HOW  I  LOST  MY  JOB 
AS  A  PREACHER 


By  J.  D.  M.  BUCKNER 
Aurora,  Nebr. 


How  I  Lost  My  Job 
as  a  Preacher 


J.  D,  M.  BUCKNER 


This  booklet  may  be  secured  from  C.  V.  Howard,  31 
Nassau  street,  New  York  City,  or  J.  D.  M.  Buckner,  Au- 
rora, Nebraska,  by  remitting  fifty  cents. 

"Higher  Criticism  and  the  Christian  Life"  may  be 
obtained  by  remitting  twenty-five  cents  to  the  author, 
J.  D.  M.  Buckner,  Aurora,  Nebraska. 


J.  D.  M.  BUCKNEIw 


Born  September  25.  1855. 
Licensed  to  Preach.  1880. 
Began  Preaching  in  Methodist  Church.  1883. 
Retired  September  9,  1922,  by  Nebraska  Methodist  Conference  at  Omaha. 
Bishop  Homer  C.  Stuntz,  Presiding. 


J.  D.  M.  BUCKNER 


WHY  THIS  BOOKLET  IS  WRITTEN 


After  nearly  forty  years  of  service  as  a  minister  in 
the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  I  have  been  retired  by 
the  Nebraska  Conference  over  my  protest.  The  reasons 
for  this  are  here  set  forth.  This  booklet  would  not  be 
worth  my  time  to  write  or  your  time  to  read  if  its  object 
were  merely  to  expose  a  piece  of  individual  injustice. 
Such  personal  injustice  as  was  suffered,  such  unfairness 
as  may  have  existed  in  denying  me  a  trial,  such  disinge- 
nuousness  as  may  have  been  practiced  in  the  invocation 
of  a  retirement  clause  written  and  always  employed  for 
an  entirely  different  object,  were  all  incidents  to  the  larger 
purpose  on  the  part  of  Bishop  Stuntz  and  his  cabinet  to 
suppress  liberal  thinking  and  liberal  preaching  in  the  Meth- 
odist church  in  Nebraska.  I  feel  that  this  latter  issue  is 
worth  my  writing  about  and  worth  your  reading  about 
because  it  raises  questions  of  far-reaching  importance  to 
the  future  of  the  church  in  all  denominations. 

For  many  years  there  has  been  a  fight  on  in  all  de- 
nominations between  what  are  commonly  called  the  "new 
school"  men  and  the  "old  school"  men.  Speaking  in  a 
large  way  this  fight  until  very  recently  has  been  limited 
to  preachers  and  professors.  Church  members  have  not 
been  let  in  on  it. 

The  new  school  men  do  not  believe  in  the  verbal, 
literal,  inspiration  of  the  Bible;  they  believe  in  the  his- 
torical interpretation  in  the  light  of  the  times  when  writ- 
ten and  with  consideration  given  to  the  education,  char- 
acter, and  vision  of  the  different  men  who  wrote  the  bible. 
Consideration  is  also  given  to  the  methods  of  copying  and 
recopying,  translating,  and  retranslating,  the  Bible  dur- 
ing many  centuries.  This  attitude  towards  the  Bible  and 
the  study  of  it  as  sacred  literature  is  commonly  called 


6 


HOW  I  LOST  MY  JOB 


"Higher  Criticism".  The  old  school  men  believe  in  the 
literal,  verbal,  inspiration  of  the  Bible;  that  every  state- 
ment in  the  Bible  must  be  accepted  as  literally  true  be- 
cause inspired. 

Another  disaprreement  is  even  more  important.  The 
new  school  men  believe  that  the  modern  conception  of  re- 
ligion should  be  one  of  personal  service  to  fellow-men. 
The  old  school  men,  while  of  course  approving  of  such 
service,  continue  to  lay  primary  emphasis  upon  personal 
reward. 

New  school  men  accept  the  demonstrated  conclusions 
of  science  in  the  fields  of  geology  and  biology.  Old  school 
men  reject  these  conclusi  )ns  in  so  far  as  they  feel  that 
they  are  contrary  to  the  geological  and  biological  accounts 
found  in  the  Bible.  The  world  was  created  in  six  days, 
because  the  Bible  says  so.  Man  was  created  as  he  now 
is  and  not  developed,  because  the  Bible  says  so. 

In  the  Baptist  church  after  a  conspicuous  struggle 
reported  at  length  in  the  daily  press  the  new  school  men 
achieved  a  victory  in  the  recent  Baptist  Convention  at 
Indianapolis.  In  the  Presbyterian  church  the  struggle  is 
an  old  one,  with  Union  Theological  Seminary  (no  longer 
officially  connected  with  the  church)  leading  the  forces 
of  liberalism  in  so  far  it  has  furnished  teachers  and  stu- 
dents urging  the  modern  views  on  these  questions.  In 
the  Congregational  church  Dr.  George  A.  Gordon  for  a 
generation  has  With  tongue  and  pen  been  a  notable  leader 
of  liberalism.  In  the  Methodist  church  also  there  have 
been  many  outspoken  leaders  of  the  new  school,  among 
the  ablest  and  most  influential  of  which  may  be  men- 
tioned the  late  Dr.  Borden  P.  Browne,  formerly  Professor 
of  Philosophy  in  the  Boston  School  of  Theology.  On  the 
other  hand,  Mr.  L.  W.  Munshall  for  twenty-five  years 
has  been  doing  his  best  to  hold  the  Methodist  church  in 
rigid  adherence  to  the  old  dogmas  and  traditions.  In 


AS  A  PREACHER 


7 


"Methodism  Adrift"  and  "Breakers  Ahead"  he  has  given 
effective  voice  to  the  old  school  view.  I  have  believed 
and  preached  the  views  advocated  by  the  late  Dr.  Bowne. 
I  beUeve  that  the  hope  of  the  Methodist  church  and  of  all 
churches  lies  in  the  triumph  of  the  new  and  modern  con- 
ception of  the  Bible  and  of  the  function  of  Christianity 
as  applied  to  the  modern  problems  of  a  torn  and  disord- 
ered world.  I  am  opposed  to  Mr.  Munhall's  views,  opposed 
to  the  teachings  of  his  books,  and  beheve  that  the  tri- 
umph of  the  old  school  would  turn  back  the  clock  of  pro- 
gress and  cripple  the  church  forever. 

HOW  IT  HAPPENED 

For  twenty  years  I  have  openly  taught  the  views  de- 
scribed as  those  of  the  new  school  men.  I  have  believed 
that  these  views  should  be  preached  to  my  congregation 
and  not  limited  to  closeted  conversations  or  controversies 
among  preachers.  I  beheve  it  is  wrong  to  believe  one 
thing  and  preach  another.  I  believe  it  is  wrong  to  believe 
one  thing  and  keep  discreetly  silent  so  that  the  impres- 
sion is  created  that  a  man  believes  another  thing,  even 
if  he  does  not  expressly  say  so.  I  believe  that  ministers 
are  harming  the  church  and  corroding  their  own  char- 
acters when  they  privately  concede  the  error  of  an  as- 
sumption and  yet  by  silence  or  by  dodging  or  by  the  use 
of  big  words  perpetuate  what  they  honestly  believe  to  be 
a  deception.  For  those  old  school  men  who  sincerely  be- 
lieve the  views  they  espouse  I  have  respect.  I  think  they 
are  wrong  and  I  am  sure  that  progressive  views  of  the 
Bible  and  religion  will  eventually  triumph,  as  they  have 
already  triumphed  in  many  places. 

At  Aurora,  Nebraska,  as  pastor  of  the  Methodist 
church,  I  have  preached  the  beliefs  of  the  new  school 


8 


HOW  I  LOST  MY  JOB 


men  for  eleven  years.  In  May,  1922,  I  sent  an  article 
entitled  ''A  Good  God"  to  the  Omaha  World  Herald,  the 
Nebraska  State  Journal  at  Lincoln,  and  the  Hamilton 
County  Register,  the  Aurora  Republican,  and  the  Aurora 
Sun,  at  Aurora.  This  article  was  printed  in  all  of  these 
papers  at  or  about  the  same  time.  It  follows  below : 


"A  GOOD  GOD" 

''Aurora,  Neb.,  May  26.— To  the  Editor  of  the 
World  Herald:  A  good  many  years  ago  I  decided 
God  was  good.  This  conclusion  was  reached  ^rom 
two  sources:  The  teachings  of  Christ  and  my  own 
personal  experience.  As  I  studied  the  teachings  of 
Christ  and  my  own  personal  fellowship  with  God  I 
decided  my  God  is  good.  That  faith  has  grown  with 
years  and  I  believe  it  more  strongly  today  than  ever 
in  my  life. 

"When  I  read  in  the  Bible  anything  which  re- 
flects on  the  goodness  of  God,  I  do  not  believe  it. 
All  scripture  must  be  measured  by  the  life  and  teach- 
ings of  Christ.  When  I  read  that  God  killed  all  the 
people  in  the  world  except  eight  with  a  flood,  I  say 
that  does  not  sound  like  my  God.  When  I  read  that 
God  told  the  Hebrews  to  kill  all  the  Canaanites  and 
take  their  property,  I  say  my  God  is  a  missionary 
and  seeks  to  save  men,  not  to  kill  them.  Why  should 
I  believe  that  story  coming  out  of  the  dim  past,  paint- 
ing God  as  a  cruel  tyrant,  any  more  than  I  should 
believe  that  God  told  the  Germans  to  kill  the  Bel- 
gians and  steal  their  property  ? 

"When  I  was  pastor  at  David  City  and  we  were 
studying  the  conquest  of  Canaan,  a  girl  asked  me  if 


AS  A  PREACHER 


9 


it  were  right  for  the  Hebrew  soldiers  to  kill  the 
women  and  children.  I  said  *No/  Then  another 
girl  said,  Why  did  God  tell  them  to  do  it  then?'  I 
said  'God  never  told  them  to  do  it.  The  writer  was 
mistaken.*  I  have  been  asked  many,  many  times 
why  God  hardened  Pharaoh's  heart  ten  times  and 
then  brought  ten  plagues  upon  innocent  people  which 
caused  untold  suffering.  For  twenty-five  years  I 
tried  to  fix  it  up,  but  always  failed  to  satisfy  the 
people  or  myself,  until  finally  I  had  the  courage  to 
say,  *God  never  did  it.   My  God  is  good.' 

"When  I  read  that  God  commanded  David  to 
number  Israel  and  he  did  it,  but  God  was  angry  with 
him  and  killed  70,000  innocent  men  with  a  plague, 
I  must  defend  God  against  that  charge  and  answer, 
*He  never  did  it.* 

**When  I  read  that  a  few  peeked  into  the  ark 
and  God  killed  50,070  people  of  a  child-race  for  that 
offense,  I  said  it  could  not  be  true. 

"When  I  read  that  story  about  Korah,  Datham 
and  Abiram  when  they  told  Moses  and  Aaron  that 
God  would  speak  to  all  the  people  and  not  only  un- 
to them,  that  God  w^as  angry  with  these  men  and 
opened  the  earth  and  it  swallowed  them  up  with  all 
their  families,  sent  fire  and  burned  250  men  up  who 
had  offered  incense  to  him,  and  then  in  his  wrath 
smote  the  people  with  a  plague  that  killed  14,700  of 
them  before  Aaron  could  appease  God  with  a  burn- 
ing incense,  I  say  This  story  can  not  be  true,  for  my 
God  is  better  than  Aaron,  Moses  or  any  other  man.* 
I  cannot  believe  that  God  killed  185,000  of  the  As- 
syrian army  one  night,  that  he  told  Joshua  to  hock 
the  horses,  that  he  told  the  Jews  they  could  sell 
spoiled  meat  to  the  Gentiles  but  not  to  the  Jews, 


10 


HOW  I  LOST  MY  JOB 


that  he  commanded  that  if  a  boy  did  not  obey  his 
parents  he  was  to  be  killed,  that  if  a  man  gathered 
sticks  on  the  Sabbath  to  make  a  fire  he  was  to  be 
stoned  to  death,  and  that  if  anyone  worshiped  any 
other  God  he  was  to  be  killed.  None  of  these  things 
is  like  my  Heavenly  Father.  It  is  no  virtue  for  a 
man  to  believe  these  things  which  p^int  a  bad  God, 
even  though  they  are  found  in  the  Bible. 

"One  p^jssap^e  in  the  Bible,  Thou  shalt  not  suffer 
a  witch  to  live/  was  bolievpd  for  so  many  centuries 
that  it  is  estim^t'^d  ?^^0  000  pponle  were  Villpd  be- 
cause peonle  believed  that  w^^s  the  law  of  God:  our 
own  American  soil  was  stained  with  the  blood  of 
witches.  The  judore  and  the  preacher  who  said  ^We 
do  not  believe  in  witches  neither  do  we  believe  that 
is  God's  law'  were  condemned  p.s  infidels  and  enemies 
of  God.  The  ppc-Q^o-e  is  stil^  in  the  Bible,  but  we  do 
not  beh'eve  in  witches  nor  t^^e  law  th^t  killed  them. 

"How  did  we  tret  our  Bible?  First  a  rpli^ious 
folk  produced  a  rehVinns  literature;  second  a  relig- 
ious folk  selectf^d  the  B'l^le  from  th5»t  literature.  Now 
we  have  a  rehV'ous  folk  th'^t  interprets  the  Bib!e. 
I  must  stand  with  Christ  ^^nd  his  teachings  and  with 
my  own  personal  exr^eriences  with  Clm^  o-^d  all  smo- 
ture  must  be  me^isiirpd  bv  this  standard.  All  the 
problems  and  nuestions  in  life  which  are  constantly 
meeting  us  mu^^t  be  settled  on  the  basis  that  God  is 
good,  and  all  other  nue«^tions  adin^^t^d  to  that  st^md- 
ard.  T  can  only  believe  in  a  prood  God.  T  can  love, 
admire,  devote  mvself,  worshin,  follow,  obev  only 
a  good  God.  All  theories  of  life  must  make  God  good 
or  else  I  cannot  accept  them. 

J.  D.  M.  BUCKNER, 
Pastor  M.  E.  Church,  Aurora,  Neb. 


AS  A  PREACHER 


11 


This  article  was  printed  apparently  in  other  papers, 
because  I  received  letters  from  different  parts  of  the 
country  concerning  it.  Articles  in  opposition  were  sent 
to  the  above-named  and  printed.  Shortly  after  the  pub- 
lication of  this  article,  I  received  the  following  letter  from 
Bishop  Homer  C.  Stuntz : 


Church 

HOMER  C.  STUNTZ 
Resident  Bishop 
320  City  National  Bank  Bldg. 

Omaha,  Nebraska 
June  14,  1922 

Rev.  J.  M.  Buckner, 
Aurora,  Nebr. 

My  dear  Brother  Buckner: 

I  am  both  amazed  and  shocked  at  your  letter 
entitled  "A  Good  God"  which  appeared  recently  in 
the  World-Herald.  I  did  not  happen  to  be  in  the  city 
when  it  appeared  and  only  within  the  last  few  days 
has  the  text  of  it  been  brought  to  my  attention. 

I  do  not  know  what  the  Conference  may  de- 
cide to  do  about  such  an  unprovoked  and  unwar- 
ranted declaration  of  disbelief  in  the  word  of  God. 
Already  it  has  brought  you  into  unfavorable  pub- 
licity wherever  it  is  discussed  in  our  own  Church 


(Copy) 


Methodist 
Episcopal 


Omaha 
Area 


12 


HOW  I  LOST  MY  JOB 


circles.  It  is  certain  to  have  the  effect  of  making 
your  appointment  more  difficult  this  next  fall. 

Yours  very  sincerely 

(Signed)  Homer  C.  Stuntz. 

I  did  not  reply  to  this  letter. 

During  the  winter  and  spring  of  1922,  I  decided 
that  it  might  be  well  after  eleven  years  of  service  at 
Aurora  to  remove  to  a  new  charge.  I  had  served  the 
church  at  Aurora  for  a  longer  period  than  any  Meth- 
odist minister  had  ever  served  a  church  in  Nebraska 
and  I  felt  that  it  might  be  better  if  I  should  preach  the 
views  I  held  to  a  new  group  for  a  while  and  also  felt  that 
Aurora  should  have  the  benefit  of  a  new  preacher.  I 
called  twenty  of  my  leading  members  together 
and  submitted  my  plan.  Nineteen  of  them  were  opposed 
to  it.  Nevertheless,  I  continued  to  think  and  talk  about 
it  and  convinced  many  more  of  my  members  that  my  plan 
was  best,  although  some  continued  to  oppose  it.  My  quar- 
terly conference,  composed  of  officials  in  my  church,  on 
August  22,  1922,  unanimously  voted  for  my  return,  al- 
though it  was  understood  that  if  satisfactory  arrange- 
ments could  be  made  with  Bishop  Stuntz  for  me  to  receive 
an  appointment  satisfactory  to  myself,  the  move  would 
be  made.  It  was  also  understood  and  constantly  express- 
ed by  my  leading  members  that  if  the  Bishop's  letter 
to  me  augured  a  disinclination  on  his  part  to  give  me  a 
satisfactory  charge,  I  should  ask  to  be  returned  to  Au- 
rora and  they  would  demand  it.  I  should  explain  for  the 
benefit  of  those  who  are  unfamiliar  with  the  Methodist 
Church  that  the  presiding  bishop  has  arbitrary  power 
over  the  appointment  of  ministers  to  different  churches. 
This  power  is  not  often  abused.    Nevertheless,  when 


AS  A  PREACHER 


13 


a  Methodist  church  wants  a  particular  preacher  to  serve 
them,  their  wishes  must  take  the  form  of  a  request  to 
the  bishop  instead  of  an  offer  to  the  minister  himself. 
The  congregation  has  no  voice  in  the  matter  if  the  bishop 
wishes  to  exercise  his  autocratic  power. 

With  the  plan  and  understanding  in  mind  as  out- 
lined, I  announced  that  I  would  preach  my  farewell  ser- 
mon on  September  3rd,  1922,  that  being  the  last  Sunday 
before  the  annual  conference  of  Methodist  preachers 
at  Omaha.  I  had  stenographic  notes  taken  of  my  ser- 
mon, not  with  a  view  to  current  publicity,  but  because 
I  desired  to  preserve  my  last  words  in  a  church  where  I 
had  enjoyed  the  longest  and  most  successful  pastorate 
of  my  forty  years  career  as  a  minister. 

A  lawyer  at  Aurora  named  F.  E.  Edgerton,  who  is  a 
friend  of  mine  though  not  a  member  of  my  church,  was 
present  at  my  farewell  sermon.  He  made  a  short  synop- 
sis of  it  and  sent  it  to  the  Omaha  and  Lincoln  papers. 
This  was  without  my  knowledge,  although  I  would  have 
had  no  objections  to  it  if  I  had  known  it.  In  the  mean- 
time I  had  gone  to  the  conference  at  Omaha  where  re- 
porters sought  me  out,  handed  me  Mr.  Edgerton's  syn- 
opsis of  my  sermon,  and  asked  me  if  it  was  correct.  I 
stated  that  while  it  was  very  brief  and  while  some  state- 
ments did  not  include  the  elaboration  or  qualification 
given  in  the  complete  sermon,  yet  it  could  be  fairly  said 
to  be  an  accurate  short  synopsis  of  my  sermon  and  my 
views.  The  reporters  had  with  them  a  photographer 
and  asked  me  to  pose  for  a  picture  which  I  refused  to  do. 
Apparently  they  snapped  me  when  I  was  not  looking, 
because  the  next  day  there  appeared  in  the  Omaha  pap- 
ers a  picture  of  myself  while  talking  to  a  reporter.  I  wish 
to  make  clear  that  while  I  knew  nothing  about  Mr.  Edg- 
erton's sending  the  report  to  the  papers,  I  had  no  ob- 


14 


HOW  I  LOST  MY  JOB 


jection  at  any  time  to  anyone's  knowing  what  I  believed, 
whether  the  conference  was  in  session  or  not  in  session. 

A  synopsis  of  my  farewell  sermon,  an  even  briefer 
account  of  which  was  published  as  described  above,  here 
follows : 


FAREWELL  SERMON 

"I  take  two  passages  for  my  texts:  'And  ye 
shall  know  the  truth  and  the  truth  shall  make  you 
free' — 'Wherefore,  Oh  King  Agrippa,  I  was  not  dis- 
obedient unto  the  heavenly  vision'. 

"Jesus  said  to  his  followers  that  they  should 
seek  the  truth  and  the  truth  would  make  them  free. 
The  implication  is  that  the  great  purpose  of  man 
is  to  seek  truth. 

"The  other  text  was  the  testimony  of  the  Apostle 
Paul  when  on  trial,  when  he  was  persecuting  the 
Christians  he  was  a  pharisee,  and  thought  he  should 
destroy  the  followers  of  Jesus,  and  said  he  was  con- 
scientious in  this  work,  but  when  he  was  on  the  road 
to  Damascus  God  showed  him  that  he  was  wrong  and 
the  Christians  were  right.  He  testified  as  a  prisoner 
that  he  had  obeyed  the  truth  which  God  had  revealed 
to  him. 

These  two  texts  teach:  First,  the  best  thing  to 
believe  is  the  truth;  Second,  We  ought  to  have  a 
heart  that  will  respond  to  God  and  say,  'Let  in  the 
light  and  I  will  walk  in  it ;  reveal  the  truth  and  I  will 
obey  it.' 

"I  desire  to  speak  on  the  difference  between  an 
old  school  Christian  and  a  new  school  Christian. 
These  terms  are  colloquial.  The  two  groups  are  ex- 


AS  A  PREACHER 


15 


pressed  by  various  terms.  For  twenty  years  I  have 
been  a  new  school  Christian  and  before  that  I  was 
and  old  school  Christian,  so  I  should  speak  with  some 
authority. 

"A  few  years  ago  four  young  men  who  had 
graduated  from  Union  Theological  Seminary  were  to 
be  ordained  by  the  New  York  Presbytery  and  were 
to  go  as  missionaries.  In  their  examination  they 
were  asked  if  they  believpd  in  the  virorin  birth  of 
Jesus  and  they  answered  We  will  not  affirm  neither 
will  we  deny*.  Some  of  the  ministers  wanted  them 
to  answer  'y^s'  or  'no'  but  thev  would  not  do  it.  The 
Presbytery  ordained  them  and  they  went  as  mission- 
aries. This  broil prht  trouble  between  the  New  York 
Presbvterv  and  the  general  church,  so  the  General 
Assemblv  p«»ssed  a  resolution  reouiriner  all  gradu^ites 
of  Union  Theoloorical  Seminary  to  take  a  certain 
amount  of  work  in  an  orthodox  Presbyterian  school 
before  thev  are  ordained. 

"A  few  ve*^rs  ago  the  Methodist  Enisconal 
chnrr»h  fl-nr»ointpd  a  commission  to  splp^'t  a  course 
of  stndv  for  our  ministers.  On  th«t  commission  wp^e 
somp  of  the  le«»dinQr  ednpntors  of  onr  church  w^'th 
two  Bishons.  and  they  selected  «  c^ood  course  of  study 
but  some  folks  raise  the  crv  "Heresv"  and  got  two 
or  three  conferences  to  enter  a  protest  and  asked 
thfit  certain  books  be  taken  out  and  the  commission 
discontinued. 

"Last  June  The  Northern  Bantists  held  their 
convention  in  Indianapolis  where  two  thousand 
dele<?«tes  assembled  in  the  interest  of  the  church 
rer»resentincr  thirty-seven  states.  The  old  school 
callino"  themselves  "Fundament«»lists"  sou?rht  to 
control  the  convention.    J.  C.  Massee,  of  Boston, 


16 


HOW  I  LOST  MY  JOB 


was  the  chairman  of  the  Fundamentalists  and  took 
three  years  to  work  up  their  program.  They  want- 
ed to  elect  all  the  officers  and  Boards  from  the  Fun- 
damentalists, and  to  adopt  a  creed  which  all  mini- 
sters, teachers  and  missionaries  would  have  to 
subscribe.  Mr.  Massee  sent  out  a  pastoral  letter  to 
all  pastors  to  send  "independent"  delegates  to  the 
convention.  He  then  arranged  a  program  one  day 
before  the  convention  opened  with  five  addresses 
all  from  Fundamentalists.  The  Fundamentalists 
controlled  only  three  states  out  of  thirty-seven  and 
the  creed  was  lost  by  a  two  to  one  vote.  The  pro- 
gressives organized  for  the  fight  and  controlled  the 
convention.  W.  H.  Faunce,  President  of  Brown  Uni- 
versity, said  that  the  Baptist  church  had  been  saved 
to  the  intelligent,  educated,  people  of  the  world.  The 
Baptists  have  always  boasted  that  they  have  no 
creed,  but  each  man  must  answer  to  God  for  his 
faith  and  duty,  and  yet  here  was  a  great  organized 
movement  to  prevent  freedom  of  expression. 

'The  question  is,  was  it  better  for  Christianity 
and  the  Kingdom  of  God  for  the  progressives  to 
win  out  or  for  the  Fundamentalists?  I  think  the 
progressives  stand  for  more  truth  and  righteous- 
ness than  the  Fundamentalists,  so  I  vote  for  the 
progressives.  I  am  referring  to  these  incidents  to 
show  that  the  fight  is  on  in  all  the  churches  between 
the  new  school  and  the  old  school. 

I  want  to  discuss  for  a  little  while  the  differ- 
ence between  a  new  school  Christian  and  an  old 
school  Christian,  for  there  are  Christians  in  both 
groups. 

'There  are  two  theories  about  how  we  got  our 
Bible.  The  old  school  believes  that  God  dictated  the 


AS  A  PREACHER 


n 


Bible  to  men  and  they  wrote  just  what  he  said, 
whether  they  understood  it  or  not.  They  believe 
the  Bible  is  the  word  of  God  and  is  infallible.  They 
assume  that  there  were  no  mistakes  made  by  tran- 
scribers who  for  centuries  produced  all  the  new 
Bibles  and  also  no  mistakes  made  in  translation, 
so  that  we  have  the  exact  words  of  God  spoken  to 
the  writers.  They  say,  *You  must  believe  it  all  or 
none.' 

'The  new  school  accepts  a  different  theory  of 
the  Bible:  First  a  religious  folk  produced  a  re- 
ligious literature;  then  a  religious  folk  selected  our 
Bible  from  that  literature ;  now  a  religious  folk  inter- 
prets the  Bible.  The  new  school  believes  that  inspi- 
ration is  measured  by  intelligence,  faith,  devotion; 
that  as  these  men  sought  God  and  lived  in  fellow- 
ship with  Him  their  minds  were  illuminated  as  ours 
are  now,  but  not  to  the  degree  of  infallibility.  There- 
fore, every  book  of  the  Bible  is  valued  by  its  con- 
tents and  must  be  measured  by  the  life  and  teach- 
ings of  Christ. 

"We  ask  three  questions  about  every  passage  of 
Scripture:  Who  wrote  it?  When  was  it  written? 
Why  was  it  written?  You  can  see  that  these  two 
theories  differ  very  much.  The  Bible  is  a  great 
book;  it  contains  great  truths,  inspiration,  history, 
fables,  legends,  poetry,  and  many  things  which  are 
not  to  be  taken  literally. 

"You  remember  I  wrote  an  article  a  few  months 
ago  on  "A  Good  God".  You  all  want  a  good  God,  you 
believe  in  a  good  God,  but  some  of  the  things  which 
the  Old  Testament  says  God  did  are  pretty  bad,  and 
if  a  citizen  of  Aurora  should  do  them  we  would  be 


18 


HOW  I  LOST  MY  JOB 


shocked.  I  am  compelled  to  believe  either  that  God 
was  once  bad  or  that  the  record  is  wrong. 

'The  history  of  the  Bible  is  not  very  accurate, 
the  ethics  are  defective,  the  moral  standards  not 
equal  to  ours.  As  the  ethics  of  the  Hebrews  devel- 
oped, their  ideas  and  institutions  improved. 

"We  find  the  science  of  the  Bible  is  not  in  har- 
mony with  the  discoveries  of  science  today.  The 
men  who  vn:-ote  the  Bible  thought  the  world  flat  and 
the  sky  solid. 

"I  have  asked  my  men's  class  if  God  could  feed 
the  starving  children  of  China ;  some  said  *yes,  God 
can  do  anything.'  I  said  What  would  you  think  of 
a  father  in  Aurora  who  would  let  his  children  starve 
to  death  when  he  could  feed  them  ?'  God  must  have 
men  to  feed  the  starving,  to  build  hospitals,  church- 
es, and  to  save  the  world.   God  depends  upon  us. 

"I  believe  that  Jesus  came  to  live  and  teach  men 
about  the  Father,  to  reveal  the  Father  and  make 
known  His  will  and  that  the  Jews  killed  him  because 
they  hated  him. 

"The  old  school  believes  that  Jesus  came  to  die 
as  a  sacrifice  in  order  to  soften  the  heart  of  God  and 
make  Him  willing  to  save  man.  I  believe  that  sav- 
iorhood  is  as  strong  in  the  Father  as  in  the  Son  and 
that  God  sent  His  Son  because  He  loved  man. 

"The  old  school  believes  salvation  to  be  ready- 
made  and  to  be  secured  by  believing  certain  things 
and  performing  certain  ceremonies;  that  it  takes 
place  in  the  courts  of  heaven.  I  believe  salvation  is 
progressive  and  takes  place  in  man.  By  cooperating 
with  God  he  is  able  to  overcome  sin  and  to  practice 
virtue.  It  is  the  indwelling  Christ  that  saves  through 


AS  A  PREACHER 


19 


fellowship.  A  man  is  saved  in  the  degree  to  which 
he  is  good.  No  ritual  or  ceremony  is  valuable  un- 
less it  improves  one's  life. 

"A  few  months  ago  when  I  had  forty  men  in 
my  class,  I  asked  them  this  question:  Two  men 
lived  to  be  sixty  years  old;  one  was  a  good  man; 
honest,  sober,  virtuous,  benevolent,  kind,  a  good  hus- 
band, a  good  citizen,  a  good  father,  but  not  a  member 
of  the  church  and  had  never  confesed  Christ  as  his 
savior.  The  other  man  was  bad;  a  thief,  a  liar,  a 
drunkard,  a  libertine,  a  wicked  man,  a  bad  citizen, 
but  on  his  death-bed  three  hours  before  he  died  he 
called  upon  God  to  have  mercy  upon  him  as  a  sinner, 
confessed  Christ,  and  was  baptised  and  received  into 
the  church.  How  many  think  the  good  man  has 
the  better  chance  in  the  next  world?*  Thirty-seven 
voted  for  him  and  three  for  the  bad  man.  Of  course, 
you  instantly  think  of  the  thief  on  the  cross.  Three 
men  give  us  that  history:  Matthew  and  Mark  say 
that  both  thieves  railed  at  Jesus,  but  Luke  says  that 
one  prayed.  Shall  I  believe  Luke  on  the  one  hand  or 
Matthew  and  Mark  on  the  other?  Except  for  Luke's 
contradicted  account,  Jesus  never  touched  on  this 
great  subject  during  his  ministry.  Do  you  think 
Jesus  would  have  deferred  the  announcement  of  so 
great  a  principle  which  affects  vitally  life  and  destiny 
to  the  last  moment  of  His  life  and  then  declared  to 
a  heathen  that  he  could  substitute  the  last  hour  of 
his  life  for  a  lifetime  of  wickedness  in  which  he  had 
lived  and  moulded  his  destiny. 

"You  remember  that  man  in  the  East  who  in- 
vited his  wife  to  take  an  automobile  ride,  drove  to 
a  lonely  spot,  stopped  the  car  and  shot  his  wife  to 
death,  but  before  he  was  hanged  he  confessed  Christ 


HOW  I  LOST  MY  JOB 


and  fixed  it  up  with  God  so  that  he  went  direct  to 
heaven  from  the  gallows.  Such  faith  is  a  burlesque 
on  Christianity  and  drives  many  good  people  from 
the  church.  I  would  go  and  pray  for  a  dying  man 
and  would  baptize  him  and  receive  him  into  the 
church  but  I  would  not  tell  him  or  others  that  he  had 
as  good  a  chance  in  the  next  world  as  a  good  man. 
Character  determines  destiny. 

"I  want  to  say  that  creeds  are  a  good  thing  if 
used  for  stepping-stones  but  a  curse  if  used  to  bar 
progress. 

**If  you  ever  attended  a  revival  the  evangelist  ap- 
pealed to  the  emotions  and  urged  his  hearers  to  get 
religion  so  they  would  be  saved  from  hell  and  go  to 
heaven  when  they  died.  That  is  an  appeal  to  the 
selfishness  of  people  and  the  man  who  responds  to 
that  motive  will  never  get  very  high.  Billy  Sunday 
uses  both  appeals.  After  emphasizing  the  heaven 
and  hell  appeal,  he  says,  *If  you  young  men  standing 
back  there  have  any  red  blood  in  your  veins  and  will 
fight  oppression  and  for  righteousness,  come  down 
here  and  give  me  your  hand.'  That  is  the  new  ap- 
peal of  the  new  school:  'Get  religion  to  be  useful  and 
to  render  service  to  your  fellow-men.' 

"In  closing  I  want  to  say  that  I  have  not  been 
disobedient  unto  the  heavenly  vision.  Forty-two 
years  ago  when  I  stood  face  to  face  with  God  in  set- 
tling the  question  of  preaching,  I  promised  God  if  He 
would  let  in  the  light  I  would  walk  in  it ;  if  He  would 
reveal  the  truth  I  would  obey  it.  The  thing  I  have 
always  wanted  to  know  was  the  will  of  God  and  I 
have  been  ready  to  do  it  at  any  cost.  I  have  lived 
up  to  that  pledge  to  this  day.  None  of  you  has 
ever  asked  me  a  question  about  my  faith  that  I  did 


AS  A  PREACHER 


21 


not  answer.  I  have  played  fair  and  been  honest  in 
my  preaching  and  teaching. 

"I  have  given  Aurora  eleven  years  of  the  best 
of  my  life  and  have  greatly  enjoyed  my  pastorate 
here.  Throughout  I  have  received  your  zealous  co- 
operation. I  have  done  my  best  for  the  church,  the 
town,  the  county.   God  bless  you!" 

On  the  night  of  the  day  that  a  brief  report  of  the 
above  sermon  appeared  in  the  Omaha  papers,  I  was 
called  before  Bishop  Stuntz  and  his  cabinet,  consisting 
of  the  following  superintendents:  Dr.  J.  H.  Clements, 
Dr.  M.  E.  Gilbert,  Dr.  E.  M.  Furman,  Dr.  J.  G.  Shick,  Dr. 
E.  T.  George,  Dr.  J.  R.  Gettys,  Dr.  J.  W.  Kilpatrick, 
Dr.  J.  W.  Embree.  They  had  copies  of  the  Omaha  papers 
before  them.  Then  Bishop  Stuntz  asked  me  if  the  report 
of  my  sermon  was  a  correct  report.  I  replied  that  in 
the  main  it  was  correct.  I  stated  the  circumstances  as 
narrated  above,* but  did  not  state  that  I  regretted  the 
publication,  because  I  did  not.  Bishop  Stuntz  stated 
that  the  publication  of  my  article  entitled  '*A  Good  God" 
followed  by  this  newspaper  report  of  my  sermon  just 
as  the  conference  was  opening,  looked  like  a  slap  in  the 
face,  an  open  defiance,  and  as  if  I  were  telling  him  and 
the  conference  *Do  your  worst.'  Dr.  Gettys  said  in  sub- 
stance that  I  ought  to  withdraw  from  the  church;  that 
I  did  not  believe  in  the  doctrines  of  the  church  and  was 
doing  great  harm;  that  he  would  withdraw  from  the 
church  if  he  were  in  my  position  and  believed  as  I  did. 

I  may  pause  here  long  enough  to  say  that  several 
years  ago  Dr.  Gettys  told  me  that  his  views  and  my 
views  were  not  two  inches  apart,  but  that  there  was  this 
difference  between  us:  that  whereas  I  talked  about  it  all 
the  time,  he  talked  about  it  none  of  the  time. 


22 


HOW  I  LOST  MY  JOB 


I  mention  this  not  as  a  personal  matter,  but  only 
to  illustrate  what  I  consider  the  very  worst  feature  of  the 
struggle  going  on  in  all  of  the  churches,  namely,  the  con- 
spiracy of  silence,  by  which  many  educated  and  well-read 
ministers  consider  it  impolitic  to  preach  or  write  their 
real  views.  There  can  be  no  progress  where  such  a  mis- 
taken policy  prevails. 

I  stated  to  the  Bishop  and  his  cabinet  that  my  views 
were  not  out  of  harmony  with  the  Methodist  church  and 
that  if  anyone  thought  they  were,  I  was  entitled  to  a 
trial.  Dr.  Furman  said,  in  substance:  **We  have  not  had 
a  heresy  trial  in  the  Methodist  church  for  fifteen  years 
and  we  do  not  want  one."  Bishop  Stuntz  said,  in  sub- 
stance :  "Heaven  knows,  we  do  not  want  a  heresy  trial.  The 
papers  and  magazines  would  give  great  publicity  to  it  and 
it  would  be  much  easier  for  Brother  Buckner  simply  to 
retire  voluntarily,  as  he  can  do  at  his  age."  Dr.  Furman 
stated,  in  substance,  that  if  I  had  not  published  my  article 
"A  Good  God",  and  if  the  report  of  my  sermon  had  not 
followed,  they  could  give  me  an  appointment,  but  that  I 
had  been  very  indiscreet.  I  replied  to  him,  "You  would 
not  want  me  to  cover  things  up  just  to  get  an  appointment 
would  you?"  He  made  no  reply. 

I  stated,  among  other  things,  that  leading  pastors, 
writers,  and  professors  of  our  church  believed  just  as  I  did 
because  I  had  learned  all  my  views  from  them  as  well  as 
writers  of  other  denominations.  To  support  this  I  gave 
the  bishop  and  his  cabinet  the  names  of  prominent  Meth- 
odists, living  and  dead,  who  had  written  and  spoken  the 
very  things  for  which  I  was  being  criticised.  These  names 
will  be  found  elsewhere  in  this  booklet.  The  only  reply 
to  my  contention  in  this  respect  was  that  of  Bishop  Stuntz 
who  said  to  his  cabinet,  in  substance:  "Brother  Buck- 
ner is  a  good  student.   I  have  been  in  his  study.   He  has 


AS  A  PREACHER 


23 


a  fine  library/'  The  discussion  lasted  an  hour  and  a  half. 
Nothing  was  discussed  except  my  published  views  on  the 
Bible  and  theology  and  the  repeated  urging  that  I  vol- 
untarily retire.  One  statement  in  the  published  account 
of  my  sermon  was  to  the  effect  that  I  did  not  believe  that 
God  sent  two  she-bears  to  devour  forty-two  playful  chil- 
dren, because  they  shouted  "Bald  head"  at  Elisha.  I  had 
said  in  my  sermon  that  I  preferred  to  take  the  words  of 
Jesus,  *'SulTer  little  children  to  come  unto  me  and  forbid 
them  not,  for  theirs  is  the  kingdom  of  Heaven/'  I  asked 
Bishop  Stuntz  directly  if  he  believed  the  story  about  Eli- 
sha.  He  did  not  answer. 

I  argued  with  the  cabinet  throughout  that  I  should 
not  be  asked  to  retire  merely  because  of  differences  be- 
tween us.  I  told  the  Bishop  that  I  had  been  preaching  a- 
bout  as  long  as  he  had  and  that  the  proper  way  to  handle 
the  situation  was  to  permit  the  new  school  men  in  the 
church  and  the  old  school  men  in  the  church  to  both  have 
their  say.  I  repeated  to  him  what  he  had  said  to  the  con- 
ference in  another  connection  that  although  you  differed 
from  a  man  you  should  keep  on  loving  him.  I  stated  that 
without  freedom  of  expression  there  could  be  no  progress 
in  any  institution. 

I  narrated  to  them  a  personal  experience  as  follows : 
When  I  was  a  young  Methodist  preacher  in  my  twenties 
I  attended  a  Republican  county  convention  and  offered  a 
dry  plank.  A  saloonkeeper  got  up  and  said  that  if  I  did 
not  agree  with  the  Republican  party,  I  ought  to  get  out 
of  it.  I  told  him  that  neither  he  nor  I  owned  the  Repu- 
blican party  and  that  the  only  fair  thing  was  for  us  both 
to  stay  in  the  party  and  each  continue  to  offer  his  plank 
and  that  perhaps  at  some  future  time  a  majority  of  the 
party  would  adopt  a  dry  plank ;  that  the  Republican  party 
was  a  wet  party  or  a  dry  party  in  accordance  with  the 


24 


HOW  I  LOST  MY  JOB 


wishes  of  a  majority  of  the  party.  This  illustration  the 
bishop  and  his  cabinet  said  did  not  apply. 

I  then  gave  another  illustration :  I  told  them  of  a  na- 
tive of  India  who  was  lecturing  in  my  pulpit  many  years 
ago,  and  said  that  the  reason  why  this  country  was  far 
ahead  of  India  was  because  the  priests  of  India  were  com- 
pelled to  preach  word  for  word  the  language  of  their  an- 
cestors whereas  in  this  country  the  clergy  were  permitted 
freedom  of  thought  and  freedom  of  speech.  No  comment 
was  made  upon  this  illustraton. 

As  I  left  I  said:  "I  hav;^  three  things  to  say — I  have 
no  thought  of  withdrawing  from  the  Methodist  church; 
I  will  not  retire ;  I  want  an  appointment." 

The  next  morning  the  secretary  of  the  cabinet  read 
to  the  conference  a  resolution  of  the  bishop  and  cabinet 
that  I  be  referred  to  the  committee  on  conference  rela- 
tions for  retirement.  The  text  of  this  resolution  is  not 
available  at  the  moment  but  I  have  stated  it  in  substance. 
I  have  never  heard  of  a  bishop  and  cabinet  making  such 
a  recommendation.  I  had  not  before  supposed  that  a  man 
could  be  retired  against  his  will  without  charges  made 
against  him.  As  I  was  quickly  to  learn,  however,  upon 
looking  the  matter  up,  a  .nan  may  be  retired  without 
his  consent  by  a  vote  of  the  conference.  I  have  not  as 
yet  had  any  case  called  to  my  attention  where  this  law 
was  invoked  under  circumstances  similar  to  these.  (For 
the  benefit  of  non-Methodists  I  should  have  before  ex- 
plained that  the  conference  is  composed  solely  of  min- 
isters.) '  r 

To  the  committee  on  conference  relations  therefore 
went  the  recommendation  of  the  bishop  and  his  cabinet. 
The  normal  function  of  this  committee  is  to  pass  upon 
applications  for  retirement  which  preachers  make  in  reg- 
ular course  for  various  reasons.  I  appeared  twice  before 


AS  A  PREACHER 


this  committee,  each  time  for  nearly  an  hour,  and  was 
closely  questioned  upon  my  views  on  the  Bible  and  theol- 
ogy. Nothing  else  was  discussed.  At  no  time  was  any  men- 
tion made  of  any  of  the  normal  reasons  for  retirement 
such  as  ill-health,  age,  etc.  No  one  pretended  that  any 
such  reason  existed.  I  repeated  my  demand  for  a  trial. 
I  repeated  my  assertion  that  my  views  were  in  harmony 
with  the  leaders  of  the  church  as  could  be  established 
upon  a  trial.  Most  of  the  committee  urged  me  to  retire 
voluntarily  to  save  my  reputation.  1  said  that  whenever 
I  had  read  of  a  preacher  resigning  or  retiring  when 
charges  were  in  the  air  I  always  thought  he  was  both 
guilty  and  a  coward.  The  chairman  said  he  agreed  with 
me  but  that  his  committee  had  no  authority  to  recom- 
mend a  trial  as  the  sole  thing  referred  to  them  was  the 
recommendation  of  the  bishop  and  cabinet  for  retirement. 
One  of  the  members  severely  criticized  my  publication 
of  a  letter  of  mine  in  which  I  took  a  position  opposed 
to  that  of  Mr.  Bryan  on  the  evolution  issue.  He  said 
I  had  no  business  to  go  outside  of  my  pulpit  and  write 
a  letter  for  publication.  He  contended  that  Mr.  Bryan 
in  fighting  evolution  was  defending  the  Bible  against  at- 
tack and  that  it  was  the  duty  of  all  ministers  to  support 
him. 

While  the  committee  on  conference  relations  was  still 
considering  my  case,  my  church  at  Aurora  had  been  ap- 
prised of  the  progress  of  events  and  the  nulnit  committee 
of  the  church  at  Aurora  called  Bishop  Stuntz  on  the  tel- 
ephone to  request  my  return  to  Aurora.  I  am  informed 
by  a  member  of  the  pulnit  committee  that  after  a  few 
words  on  the  telephone  Bishop  Stuntz  stated  that  he  was 
very  busy,  could  not  talk  with  them  on  the  telephone, 
and  that  they  should  put  what  they  had  to  say  in  a  tel- 
egram. They  sent  the  following  telegram,  which  was  re- 


26 


HOW  I  LOST  MY  JOB 


ceived  by  the  bishop  before  any  action  had  been  taken 
by  the  commttee  or  by  the  conference : 


THE  WESTERN  UNION  TELEGRAPH  COMPANY 


Bishop  Homer  C.  Stuntz, 
Sanford  Hotel, 
c/q  Methodist  Conference, 
Omaha,  Nebraska. 

Aurora  Church  desires  return  of  J.  D.  M.  Buckner. 


On  the  day  after  this  telej^ram  was  sent  and  received 
by  the  bishop  the  committee  on  conference  relations  re- 
ported and  recommended  my  retirement.  I  addressed  the 
conference  briefly  both  before  any  after  the  report  came 
in.  I  recounted  in  a  few  words  my  pastorate  at  Aurora ; 
how  the  salary  h^d  been  increased  durin^r  my  time  there 
from  $1200  to  $2500  besides  the  parsonage;  how  the  be- 
nevolences contributed  for  the  benefit  of  the  church  so- 
cieties and  funds  at  large  had  grown  from  $300  to  $3000 
for  three  consecutive  years ;  that  I  was  a  man  of  one  job; 
that  my  Dulpit  committee  had  wired  the  bishop  the  day 
before  asking  for  my  return  and  that  the  bishop  had  re- 
ceived this  wire ;  that  if  nearly  forty  years  faithful  serv- 
ice in  the  Methodist  church  amounted  to  anything  I  hoped 
they  would  not  retire  me  in  the  prime  of  life.  I  said 
nothing  about  theology  or  the  Bible.  All  understood  the 
real  reason  for  the  proposed  action.  No  one  else  spoke 
either  for  or  against  the  report.  The  recommendation 
to  retire  was  carried.    This  was  a  foregone  conclusion 


CONFIRMATION 


Aurora,  Neb.,  9/8  1922 


S.  B.  Otto 
C.  S.  Brown 
Glenn  Anawalt 


A.  E.  Siekmann 
S.  C..  Stephenson 

Pulpit  Comm. 


AS  A  PREACHER 


27 


from  the  beginning,  since  the  recommendation  for  re- 
tirement had  originated  with  Bishop  Stuntz  and  his  cab- 
inet. 

When  this  news  reached  Aurora  the  official  board  met 
and  adopted  resolutions.  I  was  still  at  Omaha  and  had 
no  communication  with  any  member  of  my  church.  My 
lirst  knowledge  of  this  action  came  from  an  Omaha  paper 
which  on  September  12  contained  the  following  news 
article : 

"Special  Dispatch  to  the  World-Herald. 

Aurora,  Neb.,  Sept.  11. — Resolutions  denouncing 
the  action  of  the  conference  at  Omaha  in  retiring 
the  Rev.  J.  D.  M.  Buckner,  pastor  of  the  Methodist 
church  here,  from  the  ministry,  were  passed  at  a 
meeting  of  the  official  board  of  the  church  this  morn- 
ing. 

The  resolutions  are  signed  by  the  following 
board  members:  S.  B.  Otto,  E.  W.  White,  G.  Ana- 
wialt,  Ralph  Otto,  S.  C.  Stephenson,  D.  W.  Call,  Chas. 
E.  Peterson,  R.  Peterson,  H.  E.  Toof,  G.  E.  Funk, 
H.  R.  Worthington,  C.  W.  Wood,  J.  W.  Haworth,  H. 
H.  Leymaster,  R.  M.  Cooper,  C.  S.  Brown,  A.  E.  Siek- 
mann,  C.  R.  Scovill  and  B.  W.  Woodford. 

The  resolutions  read ; 

"Whereas,  the  Omaha  conference  of  the  Meth- 
odist church  has  seen  fit  to  retire  from  the  minis- 
try the  Rev.  J.  D.  M.  Buckner,  who  for  eleven  years 
has  been  a  faithful  servant  of  God  and  of  the 
church  here  in  Aurora,  Neb.,  and 

Whereas,  this  action  of  the  conference  re- 
moves from  the  Methodist  ministry  of  Nebraska 
one  of  the  strongest,  ablest,  most  earnest  and  sin- 
cere preachers  of  the  church,  and 


28 


HOW  I  LOST  MY  JOB 


Whereas,  the  Rev.  J.  D.  M.  Buckner  has  for 
thirty-eight  years  served  as  a  minister  of  the 
Methodist  church  and  with  great  heart  has  min- 
istered to  the  suffering  and  privations  of  the  poor 
and  distressed  and  has  demonstrated  in  the  eleven 
years  of  his  service  in  Aurora  that  he  is  a  great- 
hearted, broad-minded  Christian  gentleman  and 
scholar.  Be  It 

Resolved,  by  the  official  board  of  the  Metho- 
dist Episcopal  church  of  Aurora,  Neb.,  that  we 
unqualifiedly  denounce  the  action  of  the  conference 
at  Omaha  in  retiring  Dr.  Buckner ;  And  Be  It  Fur- 
ther 

Resolved,  That  we  hereby  announce  our  loy- 
alty and  the  loyalty  of  this  church  to  Dr.  Buckner, 
and  pledge  him  the  support  of  this  church  in  any 
struggle  that  he  may  make  to  re-establish  him- 
self as  a  minister  of  God  in  the  Methodist  church ; 
Be  It  Further 

Resolved,  That  we  insist  that  the  conference 
reconsider  its  action  and  place  Dr.  Buckner  again 
on  the  roll  of  the  ministry  and  that  it  again  assign 
him  to  a  responsible  charge  in  this  conference." 

Says  'It's  a  Dirty  Shame" 

**The  congregation  was  stunned  here  by  the 
action  of  the  conference  relative  to  the  Rev.  Mr. 
Buckner's  retirement  and  general  indignation  was 
expressed.  While  a  few  members  did  not  approve 
his  alleged  liberal  belief  of  the  Bible,  they  loved  him 
for  his  big-heartedness  and  feel  that  he  has  been 
unjustly  deprived  of  his  right  to  preach  in  the 
church. 


AS  A  PREACHER 


29 


**The  Rev.  Mr.  Buckner  for  several  years  has 
conducted  a  Sunday  school  class  for  men,  which  was 
an  open  forum  for  religious,  political  and  social  ques- 
tions and  had  a  regular  membership  of  fifty  men. 
The  class  met  Sunday  and  spent  the  entire  hour  de- 
nouncing the  conference's  action. 

"It  is  a  dirty  shame,"  declared  one  prominent 
member.  "They  treated  Buckner  like  a  dog.  Fll  not 
be  party  for  such  a  thing.  They  can't  send  another 
man  here  after  such  a  dismissal  of  Buckner  and  ex- 
pect us  to  grin  and  say  nothing  and  stay  in  the  church 
I  look  for  this  Sunday  school  class  to  be  dissolved 
within  a  month  after  the  new  pastor  takes  charge." 

"Threaten  To  Leave  Church" 

"Some  members  asked  the  official  board  to  em- 
ploy the- Rev.  Mr.  Buckner  in  spite  of  the  action  of 
the  conference,  while  others  say  they  are  through 
with  the  church.  Among  these  are  some  of  the 
heaviest  contributors. 

"Messages  urging  Buckner  to  make  a  fight  for 
his  rights  and  expressing  support  have  been  sent  him 
by  many  members. 

"A  reception  is  planned  for  the  Rev.  Mr.  Buckner 
and  his  wife  upon  their  return  from  the  Omaha  con- 
ference." 

I  wired  the  official  board  as  follows,  as  reported  in 
the  press: 

"Omaha,  Neb.,  Sep.  12. 

"Glen  Anawalt, 

Secretary  Official  Board  Methodist  Church, 
Aurora,  Neb. 

"Mrs.  Buckner  and  I  deeply  appreciate  and  are 
greatly  moved  by  the  resolutions  adopted  by  you 


30  HOW  I  LOST  MY  JOB 

yesterday.  I  urge  you  not  to  permit  the  piece  of 
Prussianism  by  which  I  have  been  denied  a  pulpit  in 
the  Methodist  church  without  trial  to  cause  you  to 
lose  sight  of  the  larger  issues  involved.  While  my 
fate  naturally  is  of  large  personal  concern  to  me  it 
is  of  no  particular  consequence  to  the  great  cause  of 
progressive  Christianity  and  liberal  interpretation  of 
the  Bible.  That  cause  can  best  be  served  by  your 
continuing  the  fight  for  freedom  of  speech  and  free- 
dom of  thought  inside  the  Methodist  church. 

"In  all  denominations  the  struggle  is  on  and  the 
modern  school  is  making  rapid  headway.  Do  not  be 
discouraged  and  do  not  give  up  the  fight.  To  strangle 
intellectual  conviction  for  the  sake  of  so-called  ortho- 
doxy is  a  delusion  and  snare.  Many  of  our  own  pas- 
tors privately  concede  what  they  publicly  denounce. 
That  way  lies  ruin. 

"I  am  delighted  that  Goman  has  been  assigned 
to  you.  He  is  a  splendid  young  man  and  many  years 
ago  when  I  was  district  superintendent  he  was  one 
of  my  boys.  Be  as  loyal  and  true  to  him  as  you  have 
been  to  me.  Home  the  end  of  the  week. 

J.  D.  M.  BUCKNER." 

I  was  retired  Saturday  forenoon.  I  went  to  Wood- 
bine, Iowa,  to  fill  an  engagement  in  the  Methodist  pulpit 
there  on  Sunday  morning,  made  a  month  earlier.  Omaha 
papers  carried  the  following  account  of  the  sermon: 

"The  Rev.  J.  D.  M.  Buckner,  67,  of  Aurora,  a 
Methodist  Episcopal  minister  for  forty  years,  who 
was  retired  on  a  pension  Saturday  by  the  Methodist 
conference  cabinet  because  of  "progressive"  views 
on  the  interpretation  of  the  Bible  held  by  him,  oc- 


AS  A  PREACHER 


31 


cupied  the  pulpit  at  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church 
of  Woodbine,  la.,  Sunday  at  the  request  of  the  pas- 
tor there. 

'Taking  as  his  subject  God's  query  to  Moses, 
'What  is  in  Thy  Hand?'  the  pastor  spoke  briefly, 
explaining  to  his  congregation  how  best  to  bring  God 
to  earth  and  touching  briefly  on  the  new  theories 
for  which  he  has  been  criticised.  He  made  no  allu- 
sion to  the  action  of  the  conference  cabinet  in  retir- 
ing him. 

"In  God's  query  to  Moses  which  Moses  answered 
by  saying,  'My  rod'  there  is  a  story,  an  inspiration 
and  a  task.  Moses  has  but  a  rod  with  which  to  do 
his  Father's  bidding.  He  used  that,"  declared  the 
Rev.  Mr.  Buckner. 

"God  wants  that  man  should  use  himself  and  all 
that  belongs  to  him  for  service.  He  should  dedicate 
his  culture,  his  health  and  his  money  for  service,  the 
bettering  of  lives  of  others. 

"There  are  three  things  in  the  task  to  bring  God 
down  to  earth  in  spirit  and  in  teaching.  We  must 
lift  the  race  up,  force  truth  to  the  top  and  bring 
heaven  into  men. 

"The  church  is  not  to  transport  men  to  heaven ; 
it  is  to  transform  them.  We  should  be  more  con- 
cerned with  getting  heaven  into  men  than  in  gettinor 
men  into  heaven.  .We  should  strive  to  get  hell  out 
of  men  rather  than  to  keep  men  out  of  hell. 

"This  last  statement  is  in  accordance  with  the 
new  theory  of  religion,"  added  the  pastor. 
To  reporters  who  sought  to  interview  me  and  asked 
many  questions  I  replied  that  their  queries  could  best  be 
answered  by  three  statements  which  I  would  prepare  on 


32 


HOW  I  LOST  MY  JOB 


successive  days  on  "How  I  Feel,"  "My  Creed,"  and  "What 
I  am  Going  to  Do."  These  statements  received  wide  pub- 
licity and  may  be  of  interest  here.  I  include  them  as  they 
appeared  in  the  press. 

"HOW  I  FEEL" 

"I  have  been  retired  by  the  Methodist  confer- 
ence because  of  the  doctrines  in  which  I  believe  and 
which  I  have  preached  for  fifteen  years,  the  last 
eleven  of  which  were  served  at  Aurora,  Nebraska. 
I  should  greatly  have  preferred  a  trial  with  formal 
charges,  with  opportunity  to  make  my  defense  and 
before  a  jury  of  the  conference  charged  with  the  re- 
sponsibility of  going  into  all  the  facts  and  rendering 
a  verdict. 

"I  made  a  request  for  a  trial  to  the  committee  on 
conference  relations  which  recommended  my  retire- 
ment, stating  to  them,  that  I  could  not  accept  their 
suggestion  that  I  retire  voluntarily  because  when- 
ever I  read  of  a  preacher  resigning  or  retiring  where 
there  are  charges  in  the  air,  I  always  thought  he 
was  both  guilty  and  a  coward. 

"I  stated  that  in  common  justice  I  should  be 
tried  if  my  doctrines  were  believed  by  anyone  to  be 
out  of  harmony  with  the  church  and  that  I  believed 
I  could  establish  that  my  views  were  in  complete 
harmony  with  the  views  now  held  by  the  leaders  of 
our  church. 

"I  made  this  same  statement  in  substance  to 
Bishop  Stuntz  and  his  cabinet  when  they  suggested 
that  they  did  not  want  a  heresy  trial  in  this  confer- 
ence with  its  attendant  publicity  and  that  this  could 
he  avoided  if  I  would  retire  voluntarily.   This  I  re- 


AS  A  PREACHER 


fused  to  do,  believing  that  every  man  is  entitled  to 
a  trial,  a  hearing,  an  opportunity  to  defend  himself 
and  to  abide  by  the  verdict  of  a  jury.  Any  other 
course  is  un-American. 

"I  am  just  as  loyal  and  devoted  to  Christ  and 
his  kingdom  and  the  great  Methodist  church  and  the 
work  in  which  she  is  engaged  as  I  was  before  my 
enforced  retirement.  It  is  unfair  to  judge  a  great 
church  by  the  action  of  a  small  group.  I  am  grieved 
to  see  by  a  dispatch  in  the  press  that  members  of 
my  church  are  indignant  at  the  action  of  the  confer- 
ence and  that  many  of  them  may  withdraw  from  the 
church.  I  shall  advise  them  to  remain  loyal  and  to 
continue  their  adherence  to  the  church. 

"Bishop  Stuntz  in  admitting  some  young  men 
to  the  conference  said  When  you  do  not  believe  the 
doctrines  of  the  Methodist  church  you  will  get  out, 
won't  you,  and  not  remain  in  and  eat  Methodist  bread 
while  preaching  doctrines  contrary  to  the  church.' 
While  many  leaders  of  our  church  and  many  pro- 
fessors in  our  Methodist  schools  preach  and  teach  ex- 
actly the  same  doctrines  which  I  do,  yet  the  object 
of  this  question  was  not  lost  on  anyone  who  heard  it. 
I  may  add  in  this  connection  that  many  members  of 
my  church  at  Aurora  have  joined  the  church,  accord- 
ing to  their  own  statements,  wholly  because  of  my 
progressive  preaching.  One  of  these  men  contributes 
$1,000  a  year  to  the  church  and  two  others  $500 
each,  and  others  smaller  amounts,  and  one  gave  §10  - 
000  to  the  Wesleyan  endowment  fund  at  my  request, 
so  that  at  least  one  Methodist  pastor  and  one  Metho- 
dist bishop  have  been  permitted  to  eat  Methodist 
bread  furnished  by  progressive  Methodists  who 
joined  the  church  because  of  progressive  preaching." 


34 


HOW  I  LOST  MY  JOB 


On  the  day  following  the  publication  of  the  above  the 
papers  carried 

MY  CREED" 
What  I  Believe 

"I  believe  in  a  personal  God,  who  is  doing  His 
best  with  man,  bringing  light,  comfort,  and  strength 
to  every  man  in  proportion  to  his  surrender,  faith 
and  devotion.  I  believe  in  the  personality  of  Jesus 
Christ  and  the  Holy  Spirit  through  whom  men  are 
saved. 

**I  believe  that  conversion  and  santification  are 
only  the  beginning  and  not  the  end  of  a  religious  life. 

believe  that  salvation  is  not  something  com- 
pleted in  the  courts  of  Heaven  and  handed  to  man 
readymade,  but  is  rather  a  process  wrought  out  in 
the  lives  of  men  through  Jesus  Christ,  who  came  to 
manifest  the  Father  and  to  reveal  his  will  to  man. 

**I  believe  that  faith,  repentance,  and  prayer  are 
to  affect  man  and  not  God.  God  is  always  willing  to 
bless  men.   He  does  not  have  to  be  persuaded. 

''Ritual  and  ceremony  are  only  valuable  as  they 
improve  the  lives  of  men.  Creeds  are  a  blessing  if 
used  as  stepping  stones  but  a  curse  if  employed  to 
bar  progress. 

''God  is  seeking  to  make  men  good  Character 
determines  destiny. 

What  I  Do  Not  Believe 

"I  do  not  believe  that  all  the  Bible  is  equ'^llv  in- 
spired. Inspiration  is  measured  by  the  intelligence 
as  well  as  by  the  faith  and  love  of  the  writer.  No 
revelation  is  made  until  it  is  understood. 


AS  A  PREACHER 


85 


"I  do  not  believe  that  God  stopped  His  revela- 
tions when  the  Bible  was  completed.  He  is  still  re- 
vealing himself  in  the  inner  consciousness  of  men. 

"I  do  not  believe  that  some  of  the  stories  in  the 
Old  Testament  reveal  the  will  and  character  of  God. 
I  believe  rather  that  they  only  reflect  the  conception 
of  God  held  by  the  writers  of  that  time.  I  give  only 
a  few  illustrations : 

do  not  believe  that  God  told  the  Hebrews  to 
kill  the  Canaanites,  men,  women  and  innocent  chil- 
dren, and  to  confiscate  their  property. 

"I  do  not  believe  that  God  told  David  to  number 
Israel  and  that  when  he  did  it  God  became  angry 
with  David  and  sent  a  plague  and  killed  70,000  un- 
offending men. 

"I  do  not  believe  that  because  a  few  curious  men 
peeked  into  the  ark  God  became  angry  and  killed 
50,070  innocent  men. 

"I  do  not  believe  that  God  caused  two  she-bears 
to  devour  forty-two  playful  children  because  they 
shouted  ''Bald  Head!'*  at  Elisha. 

"The  ethics  and  moral  standards  of  the  Old  Test- 
ament must  be  measured  by  the  life  and  teachings  of 
Jesus  Christ." 

On  the  following  day  the  press  printed  my  final  state- 
ment on 


HOW  I  LOST  MY  JOB 


"WHAT  I  AM  GOING  TO  DO" 

"More  often  than  any  other  question  I  am  asked 
what  I  am  going  to  do.  So  far  as  making  a  living  is 
concerned  I  do  not  yet  know.  I  have  not  hunted  a 
job  for  forty  years  and  therefore  my  personal  tech- 
nique for  job-hunting  is  undeveloped. 

"Aside  from  the  bread  and  butter  job,  my  chief 
work  will  be  to  continue  to  preach  and  teach  the 
views  of  what  is  now  called  the  new  school  of  re- 
ligious thought.  There  is  nothing  new  about  it  be- 
cause the  fight  for  modern  views  has  been  going  on 
for  a  long  time.  Over  twenty  years  ago  Professor 
Mitchell  of  the  Boston  School  of  Theology  of  the 
Methodist  church  was  chloroformed  by  the  Metho- 
dist bishops  but  only  after  a  substantial  vote  in  his 
favor.  He  found  an  opportunity  for  freedom  of 
teaching  modern  views  in  another  school.  Since  then 
many  of  our  Methodist  professors  have  taught  views 
and  held  their  jobs  from  which  they  would  have  been 
ejected  a  few  years  earlier. 

"While  the  struggle  between  reactionaries  and 
progressives  concerning  the  Bible  and  the  mission 
of  the  modern  church  in  a  modern  world  is  go- 
ing on  in  a  number  of  denominations,  the  most  con- 
spicuous fight  of  recent  years  is  that  just  concluded 
in  the  Baptist  church.  For  three  years  the  *Funda- 
mentalists'  as  the  standpatters  called  themselves  pre- 
pared for  the  struggle.  Last  June  in  the  most  nota- 
ble religious  convention  of  many  years  the  progres- 
sive Baptists  won  out,  and  in  the  words  of  W.  H. 
Faunce,  president  of  Brown  University,  they  "saved 
the  Baptist  church  for  educated  young  men." 


AS  A  PREACHER 


37 


"Until  twenty  years  ago  I  was  a  stand-patter 
and  believed  in  the  verbal  inspiration  of  the  Bible 
and  that  every  word  in  it  was  literally  true.  My  own 
evolution  of  thought  has  been  due  to  association  with 
and  teachings  of  prominent  officials,  pastors,  pro- 
fessors, and  writers  of  the  Methodist  church  and 
other  denominations.  With  many  of  these  men  I 
have  talked.  I  have  read  the  books  of  many  others. 
In  the  Methodist  church  among  these  I  mention  the 
late  Bishop  Vincent,  Professor  Boren  P.  Bowne,  John 
T.  McFarland,  editor  of  Sunday  School  literature, 
Chancellor  D.  W.  C.  Huntington,  and  Professor  Mil- 
ton S.  Terry.  Among  the  living  are  Professor  Bron- 
son.  Professor  Franklin  H.  Rail,  Professor  W.  J. 
Davidson,  Professor  Albert  C.  Knudson,  Dr.  Beebe, 
Professor  Brightman,  Dr.  David  G.  Downey,  Book 
Editor  of  the  church.  Twelve  years  ago  I  wrote  a 
little  pamphlet  expressing  my  views  called  "Higher 
Criticism  and  the  Christian  Life''  which  contained 
the  same  statements  for  which  I  have  just  been  re- 
tired by  the  Nebraska  conference.  I  read  this  pam- 
phlet to  Bishop  Edward  Hughes  and  Dr.  Downey  who 
approved  it  and  Dr.  Downey  offered  to  authorize  the 
publication  of  the  pamphlet  as  regular  Methodist 
literature.  I  did  not  feel  that  it  was  in  final  shape 
for  permanent  publication  at  the  time.  I  am  certain 
that  our  Methodist  schools  almost  without  exception 
take  the  position  of  the  new  and  modern  view  of  the 
Bible  and  the  function  of  religion  in  twentieth  cen- 
tury life. 

"The  action  of  the  Nebraska  conference  in  seek- 
ing quietly  to  retire  me  without  the  formality  and 
showdown  of  a  trial  is  not  typical  of  Methodism.  It 


38 


HOW  I  LOST  MY  JOB 


shows  only  an  eddying  backwater  in  the  onrushing 
stream  of  Christian  thought  in  the  Methodist  church. 

"The  most  unfortunate  thing  in  the  general  con- 
troversy over  the  country  is  that  many  of  the  stand- 
patters privately  concede  the  truth  of  the  views 
which  they  oppose  or  concerning  which  they  keep  the 
silence  of  discretion. 

"A  member  of  Bishop  Stuntz'  cabinet  which 
recommended  my  retirement  without  trial  said  to  me 
within  recent  years,  *I  believe  just  what  you  do  but 
there  is  this  difference:  You  talk  about  it  all  the 
time  and  I  say  nothing  about  it.'  I  have  had  pastors 
and  teachers  say  to  me,  We  all  believe  as  you  do,  as 
every  modern  educated  man  must,  but  we  do  not  be- 
lieve it  is  best  for  the  church  or  the  common  folk 
to  say  anything  about  it.'  To  all  of  which  I  have  re- 
plied and  now  reply:  What  is  the  use  of  digging 
for  gold  except  to  enrich  the  world?  What  is  the 
use  of  climbing  for  vision  unless  you  are  to  tell  what 
you  see  ? 

"Therefore  by  every  possible  means  I  intend  to 
preach  progressive  Christianity  for  the  rest  of  my 
life.  That  is  what  I  am  going  to  do.*' 

I  am  receiving  daily  many  letters  from  all  parts  of 
the  country  approving  the  views  of  the  Bible  and  religion 
as  expressed  by  the  new  school  men  and  approving  my 
refusal  to  retire  upon  request,  although  knowing  what 
the  result  of  my  refusal  would  be.  My  attention  is  called 
from  time  to  time  to  editorial  comments  upon  the  subject. 
As  a  matter  of  interest  I  have  collected  in  an  appendix  to 
this  booklet  a  few  of  these  personal  and  editorial  expres- 
sions. It  would  be  impossible  to  include  any  considerable 
number. 


AS  A  PREACHER 


39 


As  I  write,  it  is  just  two  weeks  since  I  was  retired. 
I  have  tried  to  keep  my  head  straight  and  my  heart  right. 
From  the  fortnight's  perspective  there  are  four  things 
which  paragraph  themselves  in  my  mind : 

First:  The  least  important,  and  one  which  I  have  tried 
to  rise  above,  is  the  sense  of  humiliation  that  after  nearly 
forty  years  of  service  I  was  retired,  in  vigorous  health, 
against  my  will,  and  in  the  face  of  a  telegraphic  request 
from  a  congregation  which  I  had  served  for  eleven  years 
that  I  be  returned  to  them.  This  request  of  the  rank  and 
file  as  well  as  my  demand  for  a  trial,  with  opportunity  to 
defend  myself,  were  of  no  avail  against  the  quiet  domina- 
tion of  church  officials,  conceived  and  executed  the  plan 
for  my  elimination,  without  charges,  defense,  judge,  jury 
or  counsel,  all  of  which  are  provided  for  in  our  church. 
I  was  retired  by  the  cenvenient  use  of  a  provision  in  our 
law  designed  for  a  wholly  different  purpose.  I  am  con- 
firmed in  this  because  within  forty-eight  hours  a  high 
official  of  our  church  has  stated  to  me  that  the  use  of  the 
retirement  clause  in  my  case  to  cloak  a  heresy  charge  was 
an  abuse  of  the  law  and  unfair.  Fortunately  there  can 
be  no  dispute  on  this  issue,  since  it  was  frankly  admitted, 
both  by  the  bishop  and  his  cabinet  and  by  the  conference 
relations  committee,  that  the  only  occasion  for  my  re- 
tirement was  my  views  and  their  publication. 

Second:  Far  harder  to  bear  is  the  suffering  of  my 
wife,  who  for  forty  years  has  worked  unceasingly  by  my 
side  in  every  field  of  church  work.  Even  the  bearing  and 
rearing  of  children  and  her  exacting  household  duties  did 
not  encroach  upon  her  tireless  efforts  in  religious  activi- 
ties. Feminine  tact  has  ever  smoothed  over  masculine 
blunders.  Such  success  as  I  may  have  attained  as  a 
pastor  would  have  been  impossible  without  her  inspira- 
tion and  help.   To  see  her  so  sharply  cut  off  from  the 


40 


HOW  I  LOST  MY  JOB 


work  she  loves,  to  see  her  sacrificing  service  brought  to 
so  abrupt  and  humiliating  an  end,  to  witness  her  heart- 
broken efforts  to  pick  up  the  threads  of  life  and  duty  in 
a  setting  other  than  a  Methodist  parsonage,  cause  me  to 
pray  for  sweetness  of  spirit  and  for  a  clear  vision  of  those 
larger  issues  involved  here,  which  far  transcend  in  im- 
portance the  mere  personal  sense  of  injustice  o^  the  p'^rt 
of  a  country  preacher  or  the  personal  tragedy  of  his  wife's 
forty  years  of  religious  work  brought  to  so  sad  a  close. 

Third:  Taking  up  these  larger  issues — Serious  so- 
cial and  religious  ronsequences  flow  from  the  intimidation 
and  terrorism  shown  in  the  foregoing  narrative.  Men 
will  be  afraid  to  speak.  I  know  personally  many  men  in 
the  Nebraska  conference  who  think  as  I  do.  I  assume 
that  they  were  afraid  to  rise  and  express  their  views. 
Many  of  them  are  young  men  with  wives  and  children  to 
support.  The  action  of  the  conference  is  a  notice  served 
upon  its  members  that  no  difference  of  views  will  be  tol- 
erated. This  embargo  upon  freedom  of  thought  and  free- 
dom of  speech  thrusts  back  progress.  At  the  same  con- 
ference Dr.  Titus  Lowe,  a  high  official  in  our  church,  said 
to  the  assembled  ministers.  *Tf  you  have  doubts,  keep 
them  to  yourself."  If  this  advice  had  been  followed  by 
religious  thinkers,  scientists,  economic  and  political  writ- 
ers, for  the  past  hundred  years  where  would  we  be  today? 
This  advice  is  to  tell  a  man  if  a  candle  is  flickering  feebly 
in  the  dark  to  blow  it  out  quickly  for  fear  he  may  see 
something. 

Intolerance  inside  the  church  is  to-day  the  worst 
foe  of  the  church.  To  bind  the  brain  and  gag  the  mouth 
is  to  render  static  the  intellectual  life  of  our  ministry.  It 
prevents  the  church  from  attacking  modern  problem^ 
with  modern  tools. 


AS  A  PREACHER 


41 


Old  school  men  are  always  taunting  new  school  men 
to  pick  up  and  leave  the  church  if  they  do  not  like  it. 
They  confuse  the  identity  of  the  church  with  the  identity 
of  their  own  group.  Dr.  Stratton  of  New  York  was  re- 
ported in  the  papers  last  summer  as  serving  notice  that 
he  and  the  rest  of  the  Fundamentalists  proposed  to  drive 
out  of  the  Baptist  church  Professor  Shailer  Matthews,  Dr. 
Fosdick,  and  other  progressives  whom  he  named.  New 
school  men  are  perfectly  willing  to  have  the  old  school 
men  remain  in  the  church.  This  is  natural  since  they 
owe  their  views  to  freedom. 

Tolerance  is  the  great  need  of  religion  to-day.  It  acts 
as  a  solvent  of -differences  of  opinion,  permitting  brotherly 
co-operation  on  the  great  common  ground  of  non-contro- 
versial church  activities,  and  it  makes  possible  gradual 
progress  in  religion  to  keep  pace  with  the  gradual  progress 
of  man. 

Fourth:  Crowning  all  other  thoughts  in  my  mind 
is  optimism  for  the  future  of  progressive  Christianity.  I 
insist  that  the  evidence  is  clear  that  the  action  of  Bishop 
Stuntz  and  the  Methodist  conference  in  Nebraska  is  a 
local  affair.  Some  other  bishops  might  have  done  the 
same  thing.  I  know  that  many  would  not.  I  am  defend- 
ing the  Methodist  church  at  large  against  unwarranted 
assumptions  from  this  particular  incident.  I  know  the 
Methodist  church  better  than  any  other  church  and  that 
is  why  perhaps  I  feel  that  the  field  for  progressive  Chris- 
tianity to-day  in  the  Methodist  church  offers  great  op- 
portunities. My  knowledge  of  the  attitude  of  Methodist 
theological  seminaries,  my  knowledge  of  the  writings  of 
leading  Methodist  pastors  and  professors,  my  knowledge 
of  the  views  of  many  Methodist  bishops,  make  me  a  firm 
believer  in  the  present  program  and  ultimate  success  of 
the  new  school  of  thought  in  the  Methodist  church.  I 


42 


APPENDIX 


firmly  believe  that  the  hope  of  the  church  and  of  a  world 

restless  and  disorganized  by  war  lies  in  the  modern  view 
of  the  nature  and  function  of  religion. 

J.  D.  M.  BUCKNER. 

Aurora,  Nebraska, 
September,  1922. 


APPENDIX 


APPENDIX 


45 


(Copy) 

RABBI  JACOB  SINGER 
Temple  B'Nai  Jeshurun 
Lincoln,  Nebraska 

September  10th,  ^22. 

Rev.  J.  D.  M.  Buckner, 
Aurora,  Nebraska. 

Dear  Sir: — 

I  have  read  your  remarks  relative  to  the  Bible  with 
keen  interest  and  delight.  Needless  to  say  that  I  am  in 
agreement  with  you  in  the  position  you  have  taken,  that 
a  reverent  attitude  toward  the  Bible  does  not  lie  in  the 
position  taken  by  obscurantists  in  all  churches.  The  ethi- 
cal crudities  of  the  early  Biblical  portions,  and  the  patent 
contradictions  have  repeled  many  a  fine  soul  from  the  re- 
ligious organizations  of  our  day.  Amos  did  not  agree  with 
the  priests  of  Bethal,  nor  did  the  author  of  the  Book  of 
Job  accept  the  theology  of  his  censors. 

I  cannot  follow  the  issue  from  the  standpoint  of  one 
affiliated  with  your  denomination;  but  I  feel  that  more 
is  involved  than  a  controversy  over  doctrine.  Many  stay 
out  of  God's  work  because  they  cannot  surrender  their 
intellectual  honesty.  Weaker  souls,  I  fear,  are  compelled 
either  by  necessity  or  sheer  inertia,  to  compromise  with 
their  conscience.  Reactionary  theologians  unwittingly 
are  placing  a  premium  on  dishonesty.  Your  fine  stand  is 
a  source  of  pride  and  encouragement  to  many  who  be- 
lieve with  you  that  **God  is  nigh  unto  all  who  call  upon 
,  Him  in  truth." 


46 


APPENDIX 


With  best  wishes  for  the  vindication  of  yourself  and 
for  the  high  ideal  by  which  you  are  actuated, 
Respectfully  yours, 

(Signed)  Jacob  Singer. 

P.  S.  In  reading  your  statement  I  recalled  Mr.  Mo  ite- 
fiore's  opinion.  "The  Bible",  he  says,  "is  a  spiritual  gold 
mine.   But  not  everything  in  a  gold  mine  is  gold." 


(Copy) 

NEBRASKA  WESLEYAN  UNIVERSITY 
University  Place,  Nebraska 
Department  of  Philosophy 
Benjamin  D.  Scott 

September  11, 1922. 

My  dear  Dr.  Buckner. 

I  can  not  refrain  from  writing  you  at  least  a  line  of 
appreciation  at  this  time  when  a  good  many  men  in  Ne- 
braska Methodism  appear  to  be  singularly  short  in  the 
matter  of  appreciating  the  splendid  service  which  you 
have  rendered  the  church  and  the  Kingdom  in  this  state 
for  so  many  years.  It  seemed  to  me  quite  impossible  that 
the  conference  could  take  in  your  case  the  course  which 
was  taken.  I  sincerely  regret  that  I  was  not  able  to  be 
present  at  the  session,  for,  though  my  voice  would  prob- 
ably have  availed  not  at  all,  I  should  most  certainly  have 
raised  it  in  protest  against  what  I  consider  an  inhuman 
outrage. 

I  have  read  with  very  great  satisfaction  the  loyal 
resolution  which  the  offical  board  of  the  Aurora  church 
prepared  and  addressed  to  the  conference.  I  congratulate 
you  heartily  upon  having  won  such  staunch  friends  and 


APPENDIX 


47 


champions  among  the  men  with  whom  you  have  labored 
for  so  many  years.  I  most  sincerely  hope  that  the  mat- 
ter of  your  retirement  may  not  rest  as  it  now  stands, 
but  that  the  case  may  be  reconsidered  speedily.  Nothing 
short  of  your  early  reinstatement  and  appointment  to  a 
responsible  charge  in  the  conference  could  clear  official 
Nebraska  Methodism,  in  my  allowance,  of  guilt  for  having 
inflicted  an  exceedingly  grave  injustice  upon  one  of  the 
most  stalwart  and  consecrated  men  in  her  ministry. 
Very  cordially  yours, 

(Signed)  Benjamin  D.  Scott. 
P.  S.  You  are  privileged  to  make  of 
this  letter  any  use  which  you  may  care 
to  make  of  it. 

B.  D.  S. 


(Copy) 

NEBRASKA  WESLEYAN  UNIVERSITY 
University  Place 
Nebraska 

Rural  Leadership 
W.  L.  Ruyle 

September  12,  1922. 

Rev.  J.  D.  M.  Buckner, 
Aurora,  Neb. 

My  dear  Dr.  Buckner : 

I  did  not  get  to  see  you  after  the  steam  roller  did 
its  work.  If  you  were  where  you  could  see  you  may  have 
seen  my  hand  among  what  the  Bishop  said  were  "three  in 
the  opposition".  I  am  not  writing  this  to  console  you'  for 
when  a  man  is  right  he  does  not  need  consoling.  Rather 


48 


APPENDIX 


I  am  writing  to  console  myself.  I  have  boiled  for  thrse 
days  and  my  fever  is  still  rising.  I  want  to  say  that  I 
feel  like  a  boob  for  not  standing  up  and  demanding  that 
the  committee  state  the  cause  for  their  recommendation. 

At  any  rate  the  fight  is  on  and  knowing  you  as  I  do 
I  do  not  expect  to  see  you  sit  down  and  see  the  parade  go 
by,  or  rather  over  you.  As  far  as  I  have  been  able  to 
gather  from  what  I  have  read  from  your  pen  and  what  I 
have  heard  from  your  lips  you  and  I  agree  with  the  head- 
ing thinkers  of  our  church.  Garrett,  Boston,  Drew,  and 
Illif  all  teach  men  to  look  forward  rather  than  backward 
and  that  is  the  way  I  want  to  be  looking  as  long  as  there 
are  any  looks  left  in  me.   I  am  hoping  that  you  STICK. 

Sincerely  yours, 

(Signed)  W.  L.  RUYLE. 


(Copy) 

ILLINOIS  COLLEGE 
Jacksonville,  Illinois 

September  10,  1922. 

My  dear  Mr.  Buckner: 

I  have  seen  a  notice  or  two  in  the  Chicago  Tribune 
of  your  flurry  with  the  powers  in  Nebraska.  I  know  lit- 
tle of  what  has  been  going  on,  none  of  the  details  of  the 
late  years,  but  I  have  long  known  of  your  forward  and 
intelligent  attitude  and  your  efforts  to  keep  in  the  vicinity 
of  truth,  even  hard  truth.  My  dear  friend  Smith,  a  few 
years  ago,  told  me  something  of  your  work  at  Aurora 
and  spoke  in  warmest  admination  of  you  and  the  work 
you  were  doing  there.  I  recall  too  that  you  were  for  a 
year  my  superior  as  a  young  minister  in  Wesleyan  arid 


APPENDIX 


49 


the  feeling  I  had  about  you,  the  confidence,  and  the  re- 
spect which  no  other  superintendent  ever  had.  I  have 
long  since  dropped  all  conference  relations  but  I  think 
possibly  something  else  might  have  been  the  sequel  if  I 
had  men  of  your  character  as  guides,  although  I  know 
that  teaching  and  not  preaching  is  my  work. 

Please  accept  my  warmest  regards  which  your  fight 
gives  me  opportunity  of  expressing.  You  cannot  have 
fought  fruitlessly.  But  it  raises  interesting  problems  and 
I  hope  some  day  I  may  have  an  opportunity  of  talking 
with  you. 

Best  wishes. 

Cordially  yours, 

(Sgd.)  R.  F.  Swift. 


(Copy) 

THE  UNIVERSITY  OF  NEBRASKA 
Lincoln 

June  22-22 

Mr.  J.  D.  M.  Buckner, 
Aurora,  Nebr. 

Dear  Sir  and  Brother: 

I  was  so  very  much  pleased  and  encouraged  by  your 
communication  to  the  last  Sunday's  Journal  that  I  must 
tell  you  about  it. 

Your  ideas  of  God  and  his  justice  and  mercy  are  ex- 
actly as  I  have  believed  and  advocated  for  the  last  dozen 
years. 

All  these  years  I  have  attended  S.  S.  at  the  Elm 
Park  M.  E.  Church  and  have  been  all  but  cast  out  for  be- 
ing unorthodox.  I  had  never  met  any  one  in  full  sympathy 


50 


APPENDIX 


with  myself  so  you  can  readily  see  how  glad  I  was  to 
find  my  old  friend  Buckner  on  the  right  side  with  me. 

There  may  be  many  more  M.  E.  Ministers  that  be- 
lieve as  you  do  but  you  are  the  first  within  my  horizon 
that  has  had  sufficient  courage  to  speak  out. 

I  want  to  thank  you  and  join  with  you  in  the  great 
truth,  God  is  good  and  never  evil. 

Hope  to  read  more  from  you. 

With  best  wishes, 

.   J.  K.  Litton, 
829  So.  27,  Lincoln 


(Copy) 

O'Neill,  Nebr. 
Sept.  13-22. 

J.  D.  M.  Buckner, 

Aurora,  Nebr. 
Dear  Sir: 

I  do  not  know  what  belief  you  held  which  caused  the 
action  the  Conference  took,  but  my  hat  is  off  to  any  man 
that  will  gain  the  respect  and  confidence  of  his  people  as 
you  have  done  in  the  eleven  years  of  your  residence  in 
Aurora. 

If  by  entertaining  the  views  you  hold  will  do  the  same 
for  all  Methodist  ministers,  and  bring  to  their  people  the 
same  confidence  in  them  as  you  have  inspired  in  your 
people,  I  would  suggest  for  the  good  of  humanity  that 
all  preachers  of  Methodism  adopt  the  same  views  as  you. 
I  am  with  you  and  with  every  man  that  sees  the  needs 
of  men  rather  than  church  creed. 

Yours 

(Signed)  Geo.  Bressler. 


APPENDIX 


61 


(In  Camp  Coeur  d  *Alem  Forest) 

Prichard,  Ida.,  Sept.  9,  1922. 

Rev.  J.  D.  M.  Buckner, 

Aurora,  Nebr. 
Dear  Sir: 

To  my  way  of  thinking  you  have  done  a  very  noble 
thing  in  speaking  your  convictions  so  frankly  regarding 
the  orthodox  beliefs.  I  am  a  firm  believer  in  Christian- 
ity, was  brought  up  in  the  orthodox  faith,  but  even  as 
a  child  I  could  not  believe  those  absurd  things  to  which 
you  referred.  My  experience  is  that  most  people  I  meet 
in  different  walks  of  life  believe  sincerely  in  Christ  and 
"is  teachings,  but  they  will  not  go  to  church  for  many 
easons,  one  of  the  main  being  that  the  church  tries  to 
ake  them  believe  old  and  new  testaments  alike. 

What  a  golden  harvest  the  church  of  today  would 
eap  if  they,  the  clergy,  could  formulate  a  faith  based 
n  Christ's  teachings  and  accept  scientific  facts  regard- 
g  the  origin  of  our  planet;  at  least  what  we  know  for 
ertain  of  its  geologic  history.  All  men  are  religious  at 
eart.  Yours  sincerely, 

ale  '08.  J.  A.  Larson. 


Th0  Suppression  of  Doubts 
Omaha,  Sept.  10.— To  the  Editor  of  the  World- 
herald:   Titus  Lowe,  D.  D.,  looking  down  from  his  dizzy 
eight  of  a  $7,500  job,  plus  expenses  and  free  entertain- 
ent,  says  that  he  "has  doubts — but  don't  preach  them." 
he  Rev.  J.  D.  M.  Buckner,  no  D.  D.,  and  minus  a  $7,500 
soft  job  who  pays  his  own  expenses  and  entertainment, 
frankly  admits  that  he  sincerely  doubts  any  idea  which 
represents  the  Deity  as  other  than  a  sympathetic,  loving 


52 


APPENDIX 


Being  and  isn't  going  to  back  up  for  anybody.  Thank 
God  for  such  men  as  Buckner,  no  D.  D. 

They  are  going  .to  ''examine"  into  the  orthodoxy  of 
Buckner,  but  who  is  going  to  examine  the  orthodoxy  of 
the  examiners?  I  don't  know  much  about  churchology 
and  care  less,  but  when  I  go  to  church  I  want  to  feel  that 
the  preacher  is  giving  me  full  measure  of  his  convictions, 
including  "doubts".  Perhaps  before  this  gets  into  print, 
Buckner  may  be  fired  from  the  Methodist  conference,  but 
he  will  remain  in  the  respect  of  those  who  value  truth 
and  are  not  afraid  to  express  it,  D.  D.'s  and  fat  jobs  not- 
withstanding to  the  contrary.  F.  G.  Langley. 

[I  do  not  accept  the  philosophy  of  Dr.  Titus  Lowe :  "I 
have  doubts  but  I  do  not  preach  them".  Doubts  and  be- 
liefs are  so  closely  woven  together  that  you  cannot  sep- 
arate them.  Men  need  light.  They  want  to  know  if  their 
pastor  believes  certain  things  which  other  men  doubt. 
I  received  several  letters  about  this  declaration  of  Dr. 
Lowe.  I  am  certain  he  had  no  reference  to  me  or  my 
case  which  was  pending  but  it  was  an  expression  of  his 
policy  of  life  which  I  can  not  admire  and  against  which 
I  want  to  enter  my  protest. — J.  D.  M.  B.] 


PAISLEY  CONGREGATIONAL  CHURCH 
Alfred  A.  Wood,  Ph.  D.,  Pastor 

Unadilla,  Nebraska,  Sept.  20,  1922. 
Rev.  J.  D.  M.  Buckner,  D.  D. 

Aurora,  Nebr. 
My  dear  Mr.  Buckner: 

I  cannot  refrain  from  extending  to  you  my  hearty  con- 
gratulations. Instead  of  pitying  you,  I  envy  you  your 
position.    Could  you  have  served  the  Aurora  church  as 


APPENDIX 


53 


pastor  to  the  end  of  your  days,  your  personal  influence, 
and  the  cause  of  truth  and  free  thinking  would  have  af- 
fected a  very  limited  circle,  compared  to  the  same  as  a 
result  of  the  action  of  your  Conference.  Today  the  name 
of  Dr.  Buckner,  and  that  for  which  he  stands  is  known 
and  discussed  in  thousands  of  homes  and  public  gather- 
ings throughout  the  length  and  breadth  of  our  country. 

Were  you  discredited  by  your  church,  who  know  you 
so  intimately,  with  so  many  years  of  exceptional  service 
among  them,  charged  with  some  immoral,  or  other  un- 
christian act,  it  would  be  vastly  different.  But  with 
those  wonderful  resolutions  passed  by  your  church,  and 
following  the  statement  at  the  conference,  which  I  read : 
'There  are  no  charges  against  Brother  Buckner,"  that 
they  should  vote  to  debar  you  from,  or  at  least  refuse 
you  a  pulpit  in  the  Nebraska  Conference,  is  certainly 
a  very  unusual  thing.  I  doubt  very  much  if  there  is  any- 
thing in  the  Methodist  Discipline,  or  Methodist  law,  that 
can  deny  a  Methodist  minister  of  proven  efficiency,  and 
under  no  charges  whatever,  a  pulpit.  I  write  this  as 
one  having  ten  years  of  experience  as  a  Methodist  minis- 
"ter,  and  a  careful  reader  of  ''MerrilFs  Methodist  Law". 

You  certainly  did  the  right  thing  in  advising  your 
people  to  be  loyal  to  the  church,  as  these  independent 
organizations  in  a  community  never  result  in  advancing 
the  cause  of  Christ. 

As  to  a  "job".  You  certainly  need  have  no  cause 
of  anxiety  along  that  line  with  the  multitude  of  vacant 
churches,  and  even  as  a  lecturer,  with  all  your  free  ad- 
vertising, people  would  be  glad  to  hear  this  "Dr.  Buck- 
ner" of  whom  they  have  read  so  much.  After  all,  what  is 
it  all  about?  So  far  as  I  can  learn,  you  claim  that  God, 
whose  name  and  character  is  love  (according  to  the  New 
Testament),  "cannot  contradict  Himself".    That  is,  He 


54 


APPENDIX 


cannot  be  the  author  of  deeds  fundamentally  unrighteous, 
wicked  and  criminal,  but  rather,  as  you  say,  these  state- 
ments simply  reiiect  the  conceptions  of  God,  by  tne  writer 
at  tnat  time.  Why,  this  is  no  new  tneology!  This  has 
been  the  accepted  belief  of  all  broad  minaea  men,  in  and 
out  of  the  puipit  for  many  years.  The  historical  study 
of  the  Bible  has  revealed  this  fact  long  ago.  Had  the 
Methodist  church  ''retired"  every  Methodist  minister  who 
holds  this  view,  what  an  exodus  there  would  be  from  her 
ranks.  While  I  do  not  believe  you  are  the  kind  of  man 
who  seeks  to  play  the  ''wounded  hero"  act,  or  the  mar- 
tyr's role,  simply  in  the  interest  of  truth  and  justice,  I 
do  not  think  you  ought  to  leave  the  matter  where  the 
conference  left  it.  At  present,  the  public,  at  least  very 
many,  will  believe  that  you  have  been  cast  out  of  the 
ranks  of  Methodist  ministers  as  unfit  to  occupy  a  pulpit 
in  their  conference.  The  issue  should  be  sharply  drawn, 
and  be  published,  that  the  public  be  not  deceived.  "Preach 
the  Methodist  doctrine." 

What  is  the  Methodist  Doctrine  ?  Is  one  of  her  doc- 
trines the  literal  historic  accuracy  of  every  statement  in 
the  Bible,  especially  the  Old  Testament?  If  so,  let  it  be 
known. 

Just  to  identify  myself,  I  will  say  that  I  am  a  grad- 
uate of  Oberlin  College,  a  graduate  of  the  Boston  Univer- 
sity School  of  Theology  under  the  teaching  of  that  great 
Hebrew  scholar.  Professor  Mitchell,  class  '88,  with  four 
years  Ph.  D.  course  in  the  University  of  Chicago. 

With  best  wishes, 

A.  A.  Wood. 


APPENDIX 


55 


.Hastings,  Nebr.,  Sept.  13,  11)22. 

Rev.  J.  D.  M.  Buckner, 
Aurora,  Nebr. 

Dear  Sir : 

I  have  been  much  interested  in  you  since  I  first  saw 
an  account  in  the  papers  of  your  farewell  sermon  before 
going  to  Conference  at  Omaha,  and  I  want  to  say  th?.t 
I  am  sure  you  are  on  the  right  track  and  it  is  to  just  such 
men  as  you  that  the  people  of  this  day  are  looking  for 
a  better,  a  broader,  and  more  progressive  Christianity, 
one  that  people  can  live,  and  not  feel  that  they  are  smoth- 
ering their  better  judgment  in  so  doing.  Anyway,  why 
should  we  use  the  best  judgment  we  have  about  every- 
thing we  do,  and  then  when  it  comes  to  religious  matters, 
cast  the  whole  thing  aside  and  do  like  the  Chinese  used 
to  do,  by  believing  and  doing  only  as  their  ancestors  did 
for  centuries  past. 

I  want  to  congratulate  you  on  being  a  man  that  is 
willing  to  do  what  he  thinks  is  right  regardless  of  what 
he  has  been  taught. 

I  am  past  the  half  century  mark  myself,  and  I  want 
to  say  that  if  we  live  another  twenty-five  years,  we  are 
going  to  see  much  of  what  such  men  as  you  are  having 
the  courage  to  start,  so  don't  be  discouraged  for  I  am 
sure  God  has  a  great  work  for  you. 

I  have  been  a  Methodist  most  of  my  life  until  a  few 
years  ago  when  I  felt  I  could  not  be  bound  down  to  any 
typewritten  belief  that  an  organization  might  tell  me  I 
must  believe  or  be  lost,  and  have  never  felt  the  love  and 
trust  in  God  that  I  have  since  this  conclusion.  I  hone 
you  will  write  many  sermons  for  publication  and  hope 
I  may  get  to  read  them. 


56 


APPENDIX 


Believing  you  have  the  greatest  work  of  your  life 
before  you  and  wishing  you  abundant  success,  I  am 
Faithfully  yours, 

Robert  L.  Cook. 


Lincoln,  Nebraska,  Sept.  17th,  1922. 

Dr.  J.  D.  M.  Buckner, 
Aurora,  Nebraska. 

My  dear  friend: 

I  have  been  reading  with  great  interest  every  word 
that  has  been  printed  in  relation  to  the  action  of  our 
conference  at  Cmaha,  Nebraska. 

I  want  to  confess  to  you  that  I  am  not  at  all  per- 
turbed, because  I  believe  that  this  action  of  the  Nebraska 
Conference  of  our  church  may  prove  to  mark  another 
great  milestone  in  the  march  of  Christianity  in  its  ef- 
forts to  free  itself  from  the  slavery  of  doctrines  and 
creeds  that  were  written  before  the  world  had  been  per- 
mitted to  see  the  vision  of  a  real  Christianity. 

If  the  church  could  only  come  to  realize  that  RE- 
LIGION IS  A  LIFE,  instead  of  a  belief  in  doctrines  that 
have  been  handed  dow^n  from  generation  to  gener?.tion, 
how  much  better  it  would  be,  not  only  for  the  church 
but  for  the  world. 

Dr.  Buckner.  the  best  thing  that  I  know  to  say  to 
you  is  that  I  believe  you  have  laid  the  foundation  of  a 
monument  to  your  own  life  that  will  be  as  enduring 
as  the  Rock  of  Ages,  and  I  hope  God  will  spare  you  until 
the  shaft  you  may  build  upon  that  foundation  shall  rise 
high  enough  that  the  whole  Christian  world  may  see  it 


APPENDIX 


57 


and  glorify  the  God  of  Truth  above  the  doctrines  of  any 
church.  You  are  ripe  in  years  of  study  and  service,  but 
this  must  not  be  the  end  of  those  services,  but  the  begin- 
ning of  a  wider,  richer  field  of  labor. 

With  the  best  wishes  of  myself  and  wife,  I  am 
Sincerely  your  friend. 

Otto  Mutz. 


HOWARD  PALMER  YOUNG 
Pastor  of 

METHODIST  EPISCOPAL  CHURCH 
Woodward,  Iowa 

Sept.  16,  1922. 

Dr.  J.  D.  M.  Buckner, 
Aurora,  Nebr. 

Dear.  Bro.  Buckner : 

I  have  noted  in  the  State  Journal  the  trying  times 
you  are  having  with  the  powers  that  be.  I  felt  moved 
to  write  a  line  to  you  and  let  you  know  that  I  firmly  be- 
lieve in  the  justice  of  your  contention  asking  for  a  trial. 

I  have  traveled  the  path  of  a  complete  change  of 
thought  from  the  most  conservative  theological  position 
to  a  very  liberal  attitude  of  mind.  I  cannot  help  seeing 
that  the  church  must  come  to  this  position.  We  are, 
however,  embarrassed  by  a  creed  which  is  unchange- 
able— Discipline — Constitution,  Art.  XI,  section  47.  I 
have  wondered  how  we  are  to  ever  get  rid  of  it. 

I  wish  you  the  success  you  deserve  in  your  attempt 
to  secure  recognition  for  yourself  and  the  more  liberal 
faith.  Sincerely  yours, 

Howard  P.  Young. 


58 


APPENDIX 


Sept.  14,  1922. 

Rev.  J.  D.  M.  Buckner, 

Aurora,  Nebr. 
Rev.  and  My  dear  Sir: 

A  dispatch  from  Omaha  of  the  9th  inst.  is  authority 
for  the  statement  chronicled  in  Sunday's  papers,  that  the 
Nebraska  M.  E.  Church  Conference  ''retired"  you  from 
the  ministry,  at  the  age  of  64,  because  oi  your  belief  that 
a  ''bad  man  repenting  on  his  deathbed,  had  not  an  equal 
chance  of  heaven,  with  a  man  who  had  lived  uprightly 
all  his  life'*. 

Without  taking  into  consideration,  or  interfering 
with  the  religious  convictions  of  anyone,  the  most  astute 
reasoners  of  this  day  and  age,  cannot  but  agree  with  your 
line  of  thought  on  this  subject,  and  it  is,  indeed,  exceed- 
ingly regrettable  that  a  contention  of  this  kind  should 
interfere,  in  the  slightest  degree  with  the  standing  of  a 
pastor,  the  major  part  of  whose  life  doubtless  has  been 
passed  in  preaching  and  it  is  to  be  hoped  in  living,  in 
accordance  with  the  precepts  of  Christ. 

Very  sincerely, 

Frederick  A.  Johnson. 
649  West  Fifteenth  Street, 
Los  Angeles,  Calif. 


UTICA  SUN 
All  Kinds  of  Job  Printing 
Beaver  Crossing  Times  Staplehurst  Sentinel 

Beaver  Crossing,  Nebr.,  Sept.  13,  1922. 

Dear  Mr.  Buckner: 

Words  fail  to  express  our  deep  sympathy  for  you  in 
this  unpardonable  act  of  Conference.  Why  a  body  of  men 


APPENDIX 


69 


in  this  enlightened  dny  and  age  of  the  world  could  be  so 
narrow  in  their  views  as  to  subject  you  to  such  humilia- 
tion, is  beyond  thinking.  Your  people  who  know  you  in 
all  your  different  charges  can  not  help  but  resent  such 
actions.  You  have  done  so  much  good,  and  we  are  sure 
this  will  make  all  who  have  been  under  your  teaching 
better  men  and  women,  that  by  their  lives  they  can  prove 
your  teachings  have  been  the  best.  Please  know  that 
our  faith  in  you  is  great  and  we  will  never  miss  an  oppor- 
tunity to  sing  your  praise.  With  love  from  the  McNeils. 

(Signed)  Beaver  Crossing. 


CHIPS  AND  WHETSTONES" 
IN  NEBRASKA  STATE  JOURNAL 
(Sunday,  September  17,  1922) 

"Congratulations 

Dear  Ex-Reverend  J.  D.  M.  Buckner: 

If  this  world  needs  anything  more  than  another  it 
is  men  willing  to  be  boiled  in  oil  for  conscience*  sake.  I 
am  a  good  deal  of  a  coward  myself.  I  have  lived  more 
than  half  as  long  as  you  and  have  not  been  burned  at 
the  stake  as  often  as  once.  I  have  just  wit  enough  to 
feel  the  disgrace  of  this.  I  haven't  will  enough  to  cor- 
rect the  lack. 

That,  I  suppose  is  why  I  am  so  joyful  over  you.  I  am 
hoping  that  your  tour  into  the  ditch  for  something  you  be- 
lieve atones  in  some  vicarious  way  for  my  weakness  for 
safety  first.  The  proof  of  the  divinity  of  man  that  is  most 
convincing  to  me  is  the  willingness  of  one  of  him  now  and 
then  to  forego  the  flesh  for  some  reward  of  the  spirit. 
When  I  see  men  do  that,  I  know  that  whatever  their  an- 


60 


APPENDIX 


cestry,  they,  or  nart  of  them,  have  cut  the  link  that  bound 
them  to  it  and  have  embarked  on  a  voyage  celestial. 

I  do  not  understand  the  theological  issues  involved  in 
your  case.  I  do  understand  that  you  had  your  version  of 
the  truth  and  spoke  it  out  and  stuck  to  it  regardless  of 
consequences  to  yourself.  I  have  seen  so  much  dodging 
and  ducking  like  my  own  of  late,  so  much  trimming  of 
conscience  to  the  winds  of  convention,  that  I  was  begin- 
ning to  fear  that  the  last  man  capable  of  dying  for  an 
idea  had  been  shot  in  the  war.  Of  course  you  know  that 
if  ever  that  time  comes,  humanity  is  gone,  metaphor- 
ically and  literally,  to  the  dogs.  But  your  case  has  re- 
vived me.  There  are  still  men  who  would  not  rather 
gain  the  whole  world  than  lose  their  own  soul. 

To  you,  therefore,  reposing  triumphant  in  the  ditch, 
I  pay  the  congratulations  and  the  homage  which  coward- 
ice ever  owes  to  courage.  That  you  have  vindicated  your 
species  is  the  belief  of  your  admirer." 

David  G.  N. 


"CONGRATULATIONS 

To  the  Methodist  Conference: 

This  must  be  an  honest  world  or  perish.  I  have  been 
worried  of  late  by  certain  discrepancies  between  people's 
professions  and  their  practices.  If  I  get  aright  the  gist 
of  what  you  did  at  Omaha  to  my  beloved  friend,  Buckner, 
you  have  greatly  mitigated  my  apprehensions. 

As  I  understand  it,  your  church  is  committed  of  old 
to  certain  definite  and  specified  theological  notions.  What 
these  are  is  no  part  of  the  inquiry.  Whether  it  was  Jonah 
that  swallowed  the  whale  or  vice  versa  has  nothing  to 
do  with  the  case.   You  have  written  down  that  it  is  one 


APPENDIX 


«1 


way  or  the  other ;  and  as  long  as  it  so  stands,  that  is  the 
doctrine  of  your  church  and  of  its  members.  To  be 
honest,  the  church  must  enforce  that  doctrine. 

Of  all  the  institutions  of  the  world,  a  church,  it  seems 
to  me,  is  most  obligated  to  be  honest  with  itself  and  with 
the  world.  If  that  church  makes  belief  in  these  certain 
things  its  test  of  membership  and  its  gateway  to  salva- 
tion, then  honesty  requires  no  less  than  one  thing  of  you. 
That  thing  is  that  everybody  who  doesn't  believe  that 
way  either  get  out  or  be  put  out.  Even  if  that  were  to 
leave  your  church  consisting  only  of  the  Rev.  Titus  Lowe 
there  would  be  no  alternative.  To  say  officially  that  you 
believe  a  thing  and  then  act  as  if  you  do  not  believe  it, 
that  is  bad  enough  in  party  politics.  We  can't  do  that  in 
religion  without  raising  a  stench  to  heaven. 

In  the  case  of  my  friend  Mr.  Buckner,  you  have 
given  intention  to  stand  by  what  your  creed  says.  A  wave 
of  moral  enthusiasm  engulfs  me  at  the  sight.  You  are 
embarking  upon  a  long,  hard  path.  I  am  told  that  there 
are  several  persons  of  your  denomination  in  Lincoln  who 
dance  and  play  cardg,  notwithstanding  these  things  are 
forbidden  by  your  church  rules.  I  heard  recently  of  a 
minister  of  your  denomination  who  took  his  flock  in  swim- 
ming one  Sunday  after  church.  What  you  have  done  to 
Mr.  Buckner  means,  I  take  it  that  you  intend  either  to  re- 
vise your  rules  against  cards  and  dancing  and  Sunday 
swimming  or  purge  yourself  of  these  violators  of  those 
rules. 

Well,  what  more  belongs  on  a  long  hard  path  than 
a  church  ?  The  short,  easy  path,  as  I  understand  it,  leads 
to  the  place  the  churches  exist  especially  to  miss.  You 
have  girded  up  your  loins  to  square  your  church  and  its 
members  with  its  creed.  You  are  to  end  this  going  one 
way  with  your  mind  and  another  with  your  tongue.  The 


62 


APPENDIX 


process  begins  by  putting  over  the  transom  a  man  whom  I 
love  as  a  father  and  revere  as  a  saint.  Well  and  good. 
What  God  has  put  asunder  let  no  man  hold  together. 

You  are  preparing  your  church,  I  take  it,  to  die  if 
need  be  for  its  beliefs.  As  between  my  friend  Buckner 
losing  his  professional  life  for  his  faith  and  your  church 
preparing  to  risk  its  life  for  its  beliefs,  I  am  inspired  as 
I  hadn't  supposed  anything  in  this  mussed  up  world  could 
inspire.  And  so  am  sending  you  as  I  have  already  sent 
to  Mr.  Buckner,  my  congratulations  and  homage.  With 
renewed  faith  that  this  will  yet  be  an  honest  world,  I  am, 
yours  with  fresh  respect, 

David  G.  N. 


(Editorial  clipping  sent  me  without  identifying  paper.) 

"There  can  be  no  eccleciastical  trial  of  Rev.  J.  D.  M. 
Buckner  because  no  charges  were  preferred  against  him. 
But  the  conference  did  slip  one  over  on  him  when  it  voted 
simply  to  set  him  aside,  a  successful  penalizing  process 
without  the  verbal  recognition  of  any  offense  preceeding 
it.  In  the  service  more  than  forty  years,  with  much  to 
his  credit,  and  little  against  him  except  his  disbelief  in  the 
big  bear  story,  we  are  inclined  to  think  that  while  it  is 
true,  he  might  have  kept  still  about  it,  he  is  no  less  a  god- 
ly Christian  man  because  he  gave  public  utterance  to  the 
private  convictions  of  almost  everybody.  At  no  point  does 
intellectual  honesty  conflict  with  that  which  is  vital  and 
sweet  and  enduring  in  the  Christian  religion. 


APPENDIX 


BUCKNER  HAS  FRIENDS  IN  DAVID  CITY 

David  City,  Sept.  12 — ^The  stand  taken  by  the  Rev. 
J.  D.  M.  Buckner  of  Aurora,  has  been  the  cause  of  much 
comment  in  David  City.  He  was  once  the  very  popular 
pastor  of  St.  Luke's  Methodist  church  of  this  city  and  to 
him  is  given  the  credit  of  putting  David  City  dry  in  1908. 
He  left  the  pastorate  here  to  become  district  superinten- 
dent. Admiration  as  to  the  stand  he  has  taken  has  been 
expressed  here. — Omaha  World-Herald. 


PAMPHLET  BINDER 

Syracuse,  N.  Y. 
Stockton,  Calif. 


